


From the Gallows

by phantomofsam



Category: The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: 1000 years of pining and all I got was this stupid t-shirt, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood Drinking, Blood Sharing, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Esther's A+ Parenting, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Immortality, Mikael's A+ Parenting, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Original Vampires, Season/Series 02 Spoilers, Season/Series 03 Spoilers, Slow Burn, Smut, Vampires, depictions of violence, no beta we die like men, spoilers for the vampire diaries
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:20:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 48
Words: 175,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28153749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomofsam/pseuds/phantomofsam
Summary: Azariah was born in a land filled with werewolves. She had lost her fair share to them. Through no fault of her own, she gets mixed into the Mikaelson Family. After an arranged marriage to Finn, she's forced into an immortal life with the rest of them.End game Elijah.And when I say slow burn, I mean really,reallyslow burn.
Relationships: Caroline Forbes/Klaus Mikaelson, Elena Gilbert/Damon Salvatore, Elena Gilbert/Stefan Salvatore, Elijah Mikaelson/Original Female Character(s), Finn Mikaelson/Original Female Character(s), Marcel Gerard/Rebekah Mikaelson
Comments: 294
Kudos: 103





	1. Chapter 1

The whole group moved down to the caves long before the moon would reach its apex. It was one of many precautions that they had to take against the werewolf menace. Azariah used to try and make a game of it, but she was eleven years old now. It was time for her to start acting like it. She was used to entering the tunnels alone, as well. Her father usually made it a point to stand at the entrance and account for the rest of the villagers and pull any stragglers in himself. She did what she always did: she sat in a corner and waited patiently for her little brother and her father to come and find her. They would wait out the wolves together in silence, doing their best to remain undetected, just like they always did. Riah caught a glimpse of Niklaus dancing around his mother, asking if they could go and watch the men transform into beasts. Esther sighed and shook her head, telling him that they had to stay here. It was too dangerous up above. 

Riah leaned her head back against the cave wall. She could never sleep on the night of the full moon. They were far underground, true, but she could still hear the wolves howling. She could imagine what their powerful jaws could do. It made her shudder. She had never seen one of the wolves herself, but she had heard the other children bragging about seeing the men transform into beasts. Niklaus was usually the loudest about it. Perhaps he thought his boasting would make his father proud of him or even just acknowledge that he wasn’t weak.

Finally, her father came to her. His long dark hair was pulled back with a rope, sword swinging by his side. He locked eyes with Azariah and started looking around. His expression slowly became more worried.

“Riah, where’s Erik?” he asked.

She looked around, too. When she didn’t see him, even with Kol or Rebekah, she got to her feet. “I… I don’t know. He was right behind me. I didn’t see him move away from us or-”

Ulric cursed under his breath. He gripped the hilt of his sword so tight that his knuckles turned white. “Mikael, watch after Azariah. I have to go find my fool of a son.”

Mikael looked at Azariah and nodded. He gestured for her to come closer.

“Papa, wait. I-”

Ulric kneeled in front of his daughter and took her hand. He squeezed it gently and kissed her knuckles. “Go to Mikael and Esther, Riah. I’ll return shortly with your brother.”

Riah was hesitant, but did as she was told. Mikael pushed her over to Esther and the other children. He stood a ways off with his hands on his hips. He watched where Ulric had gone off through the tunnels. There was light conversation amongst the rest of the villagers, a few sidelong glances shot towards Azariah. All conversation stopped when a bloodcurdling scream rang through the air. It was Erik, it had to be. Riah was immediately on her feet. She started to run towards the tunnels. Mikael was quick to pick her up, his arm across her waist. She struggled against his grasp. Mikael dropped her in front of Finn and Elijah. Riah fell to the ground but was quick to get back to her feet. 

“Finn, Elijah, make sure she doesn’t run off,” Mikael ordered. “Cade, Blake, to me!”

The three men unsheathed their swords and ran towards the cave entrance. Finn kept a tight grip on Riah’s arm. Elijah took a different approach, kneeling in front of her and trying various things to keep her distracted. None of it was working. Her heart was pounding against her chest. She should have been keeping a closer eye on Erik. She knew that. He was her responsibility during the full moon. There were a few more screams, some yells from the men that had left. The sound of a sword cutting through flesh and wolves crying out in pain.

Mikael called for Finn. He instantly started to run to his father. Elijah pulled Riah into an embrace, her back resting against his chest. He was doing his best to keep her in place without hurting her. She strained her eyes in the darkness, trying to get a glimpse at something, anything. The screaming had stopped. That had to mean that it was over. Mikael came back into view, holding onto Erik’s trembling, bloody form. His breathing was shallow and his eyes were closed, but he was still alive. The other three were still gone. Riah broke free of Elijah’s grip and started running. Mikael told him to let her go.

As soon as she was able, she was running to the tunnel’s entrance. She stopped dead in her tracks. It was dark in the caves, but the torches shed enough light for her to see the glistening blood. The exposed bone of her father’s ribcage. His hand was still gripped tightly around his sword but his eyes were expressionless. Empty. Riah dropped to her knees next to him. Tears sprung forth in her eyes. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She tried to scream, to cry out, anything, but she could only let out a strangled gasp. She reached for his hand. He would always squeeze her hand to make her feel better. She could already feel the warmth leaving his body. Cade closed Ulric’s eyes and whispered a soft prayer for safe passage to the next life. 

Finn got Azariah back on her feet and brought her back into the caves. Some of the women were hoping that the smell of blood wouldn’t bring the wolves right to them. Blake scolded them and reminded them all that the night was almost over now. Finn brought Riah to Erik. The witch Ayana was kneeling over him. She held out her hand to Riah. Riah felt numb as she went to her. Ayana took out a knife and sliced across Riah’s arm and held her in place. Riah struggled against her grip, but was effectively held in place. Ayana let the blood drip over Erik’s wounds and chanted something softly. After a few moments, Erik’s breath gained strength. Azariah pulled her brother’s head into her lap, running her fingers through his blood-stained blonde locks. His eyes were still closed. 

“He’ll survive for now,” Ayana said.

“He’s a fool,” Mikael scoffed.

“He’s a child!” Esther scolded her husband. 

“A child that got his father killed,” Mikael pointed out. 

Azariah felt a rage boil inside of her, but she refused to leave her brother’s side. He was the only family she had left, now. Mikael walked away without another word or even a glance towards Erik and Azariah. Esther leaned down over the children, pity in her gaze. Ayana sat with Azariah, brushing her hair back from her face and whispering soft words Riah couldn’t recognise until she fell asleep in her arms.

Azariah woke up in an unfamiliar bed, her brother snuggled into her arms. The blood had been cleaned from his hair, his ripped tunic changed. There were still several wounds littering his body, but whatever magic Ayana had done had made them close. Riah gently moved Erik’s bangs behind his ear before getting to her feet. Images of their father’s body flashed before her eyes. She shook her head. She needed to figure out how she was going to take care of her brother by herself.

Elijah came into the house with little Rebekah clinging to his leg. He was holding a plate of food. 

“You should eat something,” he said as he sat at the edge of the bed. “Ayana said a sleeping spell can take it out of a person,”

Azariah looked at the food and sat next to Elijah. He put the plate in her lap and looked at her expectantly. Riah sighed, taking a bite. It was tasteless. Bland. “Thank you,” she said weakly.

“Is he going to wake up?” Rebekah asked, poking Erik’s arm.

“Rebekah! Behave yourself,” Elijah scolded lightly. “Let him rest.”

She immediately started pouting and walked to the corner. She was only six years old, so Riah supposed she couldn’t really blame her for not understanding what was happening. Riah shouldn’t have really understood it the way that she did. 

“They’re going to bury Ulric tonight. I managed to save this for you.” Elijah walked to the end of the bed and lifted off the blankets from the chest. He pulled open the lid and presented Azariah with her father’s sword. When her mother had died, Ulric had put her wedding ring on the hilt. Elijah had done the same with Ulric’s. “They were going to bury it with him, but I thought you might like to keep it instead.”

He set the blade across her lap. Riah ran a finger gently along the fuller. “Thank you.” she said softly.

Ulric’s body was burned on a funeral pyre. Those closest to him, which consisted of his children and one or two of the men of the village such as Mikael and Cade, stayed to watch the pyre burn to the ground. Erik wrinkled his nose at the acrid smoke. Riah refused to let go of his hand. She would never make that mistake again. In the early morning as the smoke died down and the ashes cooled, Mikael rested his hand on Azariah’s shoulder. She looked up at him.

“Come. You and your brother will stay with my family.”

There was no arguing and no questioning. His voice made it clear that this was an order, not a request. Riah had no doubts that Esther was the one who convinced him to do this in the first place. The siblings turned to walk towards their new home. Mikael stopped Erik in his tracks. Riah turned around in confusion.

“Make no mistakes, boy,” Mikael began, “this was an avoidable death. Your foolishness and weakness caused your father to die. Don’t forget that.”

Mikael released Erik to his sister. Riah watched Mikael as she walked away. Her brother was a child and he hadn’t known any better. Nik was the one always bragging about how he had gone out to see the wolves. Erik looked up to Niklaus more than anyone else. It wasn’t really surprising that he had wanted to brag about the same thing. It was Riah who hadn’t kept an eye on her brother. She wouldn’t ever let him go again. She was reluctant to even let him out of her sight, even to play with Henrik. She took one last glance to the ashes of her father’s pyre. The ashes would be buried later near the White Oak Tree in the center of the village, where vervain grew in clumps. She turned to the sky and silently hoped that he was finally with her mother again.

“Azariah, come help me with this mixture,” Esther called. Riah turned, glancing from Erik and Herink to the house. “Erik will be just fine, Riah. Come here. Please.”

She let out a sigh and went into the house. Finn was standing near his mother. Esther was standing over a wooden bowl, using a pestle to grind various dried herbs, occasionally adding water to make a smooth, sickly sweet paste.

“Can you grab the dried wolfsbane from the window?” 

Riah nodded. “What is this for?” she asked as she handed Esther the herb. 

“A healing paste. We’ll put it on your brother’s wounds twice daily to promote healing. It won’t stop any scarring.”

Azariah nodded. Esther gave her a list of ingredients and handed her the pestle. Riah would be expected to make this herself. Esther would need to be focused on other things. If she needed help, she could always go to Finn. Riah looked up at Finn. He was almost as tall as his father already. Like Riah, he had long, dark hair. He always had a stern look on his face. Riah wasn’t certain that she had ever seen Finn smile. Then again, she never really paid attention.

“Thank you, Esther. For helping us.”

“Think nothing of it, dear. Your mother was a good friend of mine. Ulric, too.” 

Riah looked at the paste. “Like this?” she asked.

“You’re doing wonderfully,” Esther smiled softly down at her. 

Riah focused her attention on the mortar and pestle. The smell of the herbs burned her nose, but she did her best to ignore that. It was flushing the smell of blood and burnt flesh out. She would never forget those smells. She just knew it. Just like she wouldn’t never forget the sight of her father’s mutilated body. Her grip tightened on the pestle.

“Let me take over,” Finn said with a sigh. “Get some air or something Azariah.”

She stepped away and went back outside. She didn’t know what to do with herself now. She would have to become the head of her own house until Erik was old enough to understand what that meant. She hoped that she was able to do it well.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, yes, Mikael's A+ parenting.

Riah could hear the sound of metal against metal. It wasn’t uncommon for the men of the village to train with their swords when there was nothing else to do. At the very least, it could provide a little bit of entertainment amongst the drag of their normal lives. She walked outside and saw Elijah with Henrik. Henrik was holding a short sword that was almost as tall as he was. It was pretty clear that they had been going at this for a while. Henrik had worked up quite the sweat. Elijah barely looked affected by it. Erik was sitting against the White Oak, pulling petals off of the lavender while he watched. Elijah had Henrik readjust his stance.

“You need to keep your weight centered, Henrik. Otherwise, your opponent can knock you down easily, like so.”

Elijah rushed forward and hooked his foot behind Henrik’s right leg. He pulled back and caught Henrik before he could land on the hard earth. Henrik dropped his sword and stared at his older brother in awe. Riah walked over to Erik. She looked down at him. There was a small pile of flower petals and stems in front of him.

“You know, if you asked, I’m sure Elijah would teach you, too,” Riah said.

Erik shook his head. “No, I’m fine here.”

“Is there a reason you don’t want to train?”

“A sword’s no good against a wolf. I’d rather learn to use a bow.”

“A bow’s no good against a wolf, either. It took three well trained men to even injure one.” Erik didn’t look at Riah, just tearing the flower in his hands in half. “You need to get those thoughts out of your head, Erik. There’s a reason we go to the tunnels on the full moon. Learn to use a sword to protect us from other threats.”

“Why can’t I just help Esther? Like you and Rebekah?”

“You wouldn’t like it. It’s tedious work.” Riah sat next to him and leaned her head against his shoulder. “You can’t be scared forever, Erik.”

“I know! I just…” Erik pulled his legs to his chest and hid his face. “I just don’t want anyone else to get hurt because of me.”

Azariah didn’t say anything else. She didn’t know what she could say to make him feel better. Erik pushed her off his shoulder, standing up. He kicked away the careful pile of flower petals as he stormed off towards the house. Henrik looked at Elijah expectantly. The older nodded and Henrik ran to chase after Erik. Elijah stuck his sword in the dirt before walking to Azariah. He took another look at Erik. He was trying to get Henrik to leave him alone, but Henrik was a persistent kid. He wouldn’t take no for an answer.

“How are you, Azariah?” Elijah asked.

That was a loaded question. There were a lot of things running through her head. It had been three months since Ulric’s death. Erik was taking it much harder than Riah was. He was only six years old. He should have been more concerned with how to have fun or do something with his time other than watch the rest of the people move forward. He had to get stronger. He had to get used to the idea that people died all the time. There was no stopping it. It didn’t help that Mikael took every opportunity to remind Erik about how weak he was. 

“I’m fine,” Riah said, “but I’m worried about Erik. He doesn’t have any friends. Look at him. He just wants to hide away.” She sighed. “I suppose I can’t really blame him. I only saw the aftermath of the attack. Poor Erik saw the whole thing. He barely survived it himself.”

“All you can do is continue to bring him back to us,” Elijah said with a soft smile.

“But how long do I have to hold him together, Elijah?” She shook her head. “I’ll go and try to find his favourite flowers in the woods. Maybe seeing some beauty will make him feel better.”

She really didn’t know what to do with him. Maybe he was just growing up too fast.

“Would you like some company?” Elijah asked. 

Riah hid a slowly forming blush. “That… that would be nice, thank you.”

“Well, then, what are we waiting for? We should head out now so we can be back before it gets dark. You know how Mother gets when we’re late for meals.”

Elijah held out his hand to Azariah. She hesitated before taking it. He pulled her to her feet. Elijah walked to his sword, pulling it out of the ground and sheathing it. He offered his arm to her. 

“My lady,” he said with a grin.

“Why thank you, kind sir,”

Riah wrapped her arm in Elijah’s. They walked towards the woods together. It was almost always gray around the village, no matter what they did. The forest was where the true colours of the world were hiding. It was where Riah used to love hiding, too. Whether it was from the other people in the village or even her brother after a long day, the woods were where she felt the safest. During the day, anyway. There was something eerie about them, now. It felt like there were eyes watching her behind every tree. Every crack of a branch was danger. She was grateful to have Elijah by her side now.

“How are you doing, Azariah? Really?” Elijah asked, breaking the silence.

She wasn’t sure how to answer that. Now that they were so far away from the village, from her brother, she felt that it was finally safe to say anything. She just wasn’t sure what the truth was. She hadn’t really taken the time to think about how Ulric’s death had impacted her. She’d been too worried about Erik. Too worried about how he would be changed by what happened. Riah looked up to the sky. It was grey. It seemed like it had been grey for months now.

“I miss him. There are some nights that I cry silently. It has to be silent. I can’t let Erik know… it would just make him feel so much worse. He’s a child.”

“He’s your family,” Elijah agreed, “and there’s nothing more important in this world than that.”

Azariah nodded. She bent down and made a small bouquet of various wild flowers. Vervain was the main one, sticking out around the edges. Erik always loved the herb. Azariah couldn’t wrap her mind around it, but she was certain he would enjoy it. While she and Elijah walked back to the village, Riah worked on weaving the stems into a small crown. Elijah did his best to keep the conversation more light hearted than before. Perhaps he had sensed her hesitance in speaking the closer they got to home. No matter what it was, she was appreciative. As soon as they reached the clearing of the village, she could see Mikael standing with his arms crossed. He saw the two of them and walked towards them. His anger was apparent in his steps. Elijah instinctively stepped in front of Riah.

Mikael looked down at the flower crown in Riah’s hand and raised an eyebrow at his son. “Wasting your day picking flowers, are you, boy?”

“He was keeping me safe,” Riah said.

Mikael turned his gaze to her. He narrowed his eyes. “I don’t believe I asked you the question, girl. You thought it wise to take Elijah away from his work?”

“He was finished for the day.”

She could feel her legs shaking as Mikael rounded on her. She was grateful for the long skirt hiding that fact from Mikael. She held his gaze with as much confidence as she could muster. Elijah pushed her farther behind him, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword. Riah had seen how Mikael treated Nik. She knew that she shouldn’t have dared to stand up to him, but something was spurring her onwards. She couldn’t stop herself from speaking in spite of her fears.

“Scared of the woods, are you? Then perhaps you should avoid them, rather than taking away from the resources of this village.”

He turned on his heel and stalked away from the two of them. Riah let out a breath she hadn’t realised she was holding. She knew that there wasn’t anything she could do to stop Mikael. She had seen the way he treated his children. Niklaus. She knew the extent of his wrath. She couldn’t help her friends, as much as she might have wanted to. She was just a child herself, after all. Elijah turned to face her. He was trying to keep his face neutral, but Riah could still see the fear and worry in his eyes. She couldn’t blame him for that.

“You should get those to Erik now.”

“Elijah-”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll just work extra hard tonight to make up for it. I had fun with you today, Riah.” He gave an exaggerated bow, kissing her hand before walking off towards Mikael quickly. 

Azariah watched him leave for a second. The blush had returned to her cheeks. She shook her head and went to find Erik. She wasn’t surprised to find him watching Kol enact whatever prank he most recently decided to enact. She tapped Erik’s shoulder twice. He gestured for her to kneel next to her. She shook her head.

“I’m not staying for that long,” Riah whispered, “I just had something I wanted to give to you.”

Erik turned his gaze to Riah expectantly. “What is it?”

“Close your eyes,” she said. Erik looked at her suspiciously but did as she said. Riah dropped the crown on his head. “And open them!”

Erik felt around the crown and gently pulled it off. “Vervain. Like the ones growing by Mother. And Father.”

“Yes. I know you used to love them so. Do you like it?” Erik nodded. “Good. Tell Kol not to get into too much trouble. I’m going to see if Esther needs any help.”

She ruffled his hair with a grin. Erik gave a halfhearted smile in return. It was better than the scowl he usually had nowadays. She really hoped it was a sign that he was getting better, even if it was just a little bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a great dad.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, we love backstory in this household. 
> 
> Also comments. :)

“It’s been four years, Erik! Let it go!” Riah yelled.

“Why do we allow the wolves to live?!” Erik questioned. He slammed his hands against the table. “They hunt us and we hide like cowards!”

“It isn’t cowardly to be human! The wolves aren’t just beasts. They’re _people_ cursed to turn into wolves once a month. We cannot kill them for revenge, especially not for things long in the past.”

“They have hurt good men. Warriors!”

“They only hurt those foolish enough to leave the caves on a full moon.”

“Foolish like me?”

“Yes!” She almost screamed out the word. It echoed across the village. The guilt almost immediately overtook her. Erik stood from the table and stormed off towards the door. “Erik, wait, please!”

Azariah followed him for a beat. She stopped at the door frame when she saw him run to Kol. Kol was the only person Erik seemed to enjoy spending any time with anymore. She really wished he’d spend more time with the children around the village his own age. Kol wasn’t a good influence. Riah had almost no doubts that his renewed hatred of the werewolves had something to do with Kol. The older boy liked to tease Erik to see just how far he could push him before he snapped. Kol treated her brother more like a plaything than an actual human being. A part of Riah resented Kol for that. She also knew it was Kol’s best attempt at getting Erik to leave him alone without actually telling him to go away. Azariah moved a bit more away from the house to keep an eye on them before they could vanish from sight completely.

Rebekah loved to join in when she could, but Kol hated that even more than he hated Erik following him. Rebekah would almost always confess their schemes to Esther if there was even the slightest hint she would get into trouble. She knew it was far better for Esther to know before Mikael did. If Riah ever had a clue what Kol was planning next, she probably would have told Esther, too, just to keep Erik out of the crossfire. Erik was her responsibility, after all. She needed to make sure he wasn’t getting into too much trouble.

“You’re staring,” Nik said, pulling Riah out of her thoughts. He draped his arm over her shoulders. “Care to share what’s got you so distracted? It’s not me, is it?”

Riah playfully pushed Nik away. She crossed her arms and watched Kol disappear behind a house. “It’s Erik. Well, Erik and _Kol_. They’re getting themselves into trouble again.”

“Well, Erik is getting to that age where he wants to rebel against his mother. I can’t say I blame him.”

Riah moved to swat the back of Nik’s head. He easily dodged her with a grin. He stood in a ready stance, almost like he was begging for her to try again. Who was she to deny that? She rushed at Nik with a smile of her own. He grabbed her arm as gently as he could. They were both laughing and smiling. It was nice to have these few moments where they could have fun. It was rare and it could only really happen when Mikael was out of the camp. They both knew that if they were caught, they’d be reprimanded. Nik would more than likely take the brunt of it. Still, he wanted to have these moments. Azariah liked seeing the smile in his eyes. It made him look more his age. He didn’t need to be as serious as he always was. This side of him, the fun care-free side, was much better than the serious version always around the house. Despite the bruises Riah was certain were hiding under his tunic, Nik would still run and rough house with his siblings when he could.

“Stop it!” Henrik cried. He pushed himself between Riah and Nik. “No fighting!”

Nik laughed and picked up his little brother. “It’s not real fighting, Henrik. You don’t have to worry.” 

Henrik reached up and brushed some of Nik’s hair away from his face. THere was an obvious mark from one of Mikael’s many blows. “No fighting,” Henrik said again.

“You should listen more to our little brother,” Finn said as he walked up. Nik put Henrik on the ground and straightened up at the sight of his older brother. Finn was about 20 years old now. He was usually stern and now wasn’t any different. “Father and the others will be back from the hunt soon. You should prepare yourself to help clean the meat.” Finn pushed a sheathed dagger into Nik’s arms. “Henrik, go back to Mother. She’s worried about you.”

From his words, it seemed like he was being the annoyed older brother, but Riah could see the way he was looking at Nik. There was worry in his eyes. Even Finn, the brother who didn’t seem to care, had seen how unjustly Mikael treated Niklaus. Finn was trying to make sure that it wasn’t any worse for Nik than it usually was. Still, it seemed like all Finn ever did was scold his siblings. If he wasn’t doing that, then he was with Esther, helping her with one of her potions or spells. Azariah knew that Finn had been born before the Mikaelsons moved to the new world. Supposedly, they had had another child, a daughter named Freya, that Finn had loved dearly. She had died from some sort of plague and they’d come here to avoid it. 

Riah wondered if it was that fear of losing another loved one that kept Finn from getting close to his younger siblings. Was that why Mikael was constantly so hard on his family? There were a million questions running around her head whenever she thought about them.

Finn walked back towards the house with Henrik in tow. Nik watched them for a moment. He let out an aggravated huff and headed to where they skinned the animals and salted the meat. A horn signaled the return of the men. Azariah ran to the White Oak to watch them come back. Sure enough, Elijah was with them. He caught her gaze and smiled with a happy wave. She met with him halfway. He pointed to the deer Cade was carrying. It had two arrows in its neck and a long slash from the final blow.

“I helped bring that beast down,” Elijah said proudly, “those are my arrows.”

“That’s very impressive, Elijah. It can’t have been easy.”

“Where’s Erik?”

“Off with Kol again. We had a bit of a spat today. I think he’s mad at me.”

“Well, off with Kol is never a good thing. I’ll see if I can’t track them down once we get this game out of here. Don’t worry. I won’t let him do anything stupid.”

“Thank you, Elijah.”

“And what of your day? Besides fighting with Erik, I mean.”

“I was hoping to find Ayana. She asked yesterday for my help finding some herbs to bind one of her spells. She vanished before I could bring them to her.”

Riah had been working with Ayana more and more recently. Ayana knew more about witchcraft and spells than Esther did. After all, she actually practised those magics. Riah wanted to learn them, too. She wasn’t expected or even encouraged to learn how to use a sword or a bow. If she learned magic, then maybe she’d be able to protect the people that she cared about. That was all that she really wanted.

“Spending a lot of time with Ayana, are you? Careful, you might make Mother jealous. She always wanted another daughter. I think she’s found that in you.”

“Ayana is just teaching me the actual parts of magic, not just mixing herbs and making poultices. It isn’t anything big or dangerous, yet. Just making a leaf float and lighting a candle without a flint. If I keep up my practise, I can be a great witch one day, you know.”

“I have no doubts that you will conquer whatever you put your mind to, Riah.”

Riah looked to the ground, a little embarrassed at his praise. She was grateful that her hair was long enough to hide her reddened cheeks. She was saved from responding by Mikael calling Elijah’s name. He bid her farewell and was off, leaving Riah alone with her thoughts. She knew she was too weak and too scared to help Elijah and the others now, but she was determined to change that for good. She just had to keep practicing. One day, it would be enough. She would be enough. She knew it. It had to be. Hopefully, with Ayana’s help, she could make sure that Erik wasn’t so afraid of the world anymore. She could even take away his hatred. He was too young to be stuck with so much rage.

Kol and Erik came bursting out from behind one of the houses. They both had wicked grins on their faces. Riah sighed. There was the last of the peace for the day gone. She couldn’t even imagine what trouble they had gotten themselves into this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, Kol. What a prankster.


	4. Chapter 4

Azariah looked up from the grimoire in her lap. She had turned to a section on enchanted items. This particular entry was on how to make magic items that could weaken someone’s spirit and lessen their aggression. Riah thought that Mikael would do well with an item like that. Maybe then he’d be a somewhat decent father. She kept reading on.

“Ayana,” she asked, “could this spell be altered to give a person courage?”

Ayana walked over to Riah, taking the grimoire from her hands. She looked at the page. Riah couldn’t quite read the expression on her face. Ayana closed the book and set it to the side.

“I suppose that it could be done,” Ayana said with a small smile. “Why do you want to make one?”

“I… I want it for Erik. If he isn’t angry and yelling about the wolves, then he’s crying out in fear. I want to give him the chance to have a normal life.”

“Magic isn’t the solution to everything, my child.”

Riah looked away sheepishly. “I know that, but it’s been four yeas since Father’s death and he’s only getting worse. Now, he blames himself for our mother’s death, too. It’s too much weight for a child to bear. I just want to ease his burden if I can.”

“Liv would have gladly given her life for either one of you. Even before Erik was born, she loved him so much. You share her heart, Riah. I understand why you want to do this for him. I just want to make sure that _you_ know why. All magic, no matter how small, how trivial, and no matter the reason, comes at a cost. Sometimes, _most_ of the time, the energy our bodies expend when performing a spell is enough, but sometimes it can be much, much darker. I want you to carefully consider the consequences, Azariah. Are you prepared to pay the price for this, whatever it may be?” 

“Yes.” Azariah’s words came without a moment’s hesitation. “For my family, no price is too high.”

“Good. Remember that strength moving forward. Now,” Ayana opened the grimoire, “you’ll need a pendant, something he can keep on his person always. It doesn’t particularly matter what the pendent itself is. While you find one, I will set up everything you’ll need.”

“You won’t be helping me?”

“I will allow you to channel me. You’re not quite strong enough for this spell, yet, but your love for your brother will help cement the spell to the item. It has to be you performing it.”

Azariah nodded. She practically ran outside. She knew exactly what she wanted to use. Her father had given her mother a hand-carved pendant of a bear’s head for their marriage. Even though she had been young when her mother died, Azariah could remember every detail of it. It hadn’t been a particularly good carving, but her mother never took it off. It had been burned with her, unfortunately, but Riah was certain that she could make another one. The only problem with her plan was that she had no knives of her own. Ulric’s had been split amongst all of the men and she was too scared to ask Mikael for one. She was even more scared to try and steal one. There wasn’t anyone in the village that she could think of that would lend one to her, either. They thought it was unseemly for a woman to wield a blade.

She supposed there was one person she could ask. She just wasn’t entirely sure what his reaction would be.

Azariah found Finn right where she thought he’d be: outside the house, waiting for Esther to come back from gathering ingredients for the meal tonight. She sat down next to him and thought about how she could best go about asking for his help.

“Spit it out, Riah,” Finn sighed.

“Oh! I, erm..” she looked at her feet. “I need your help carving a pendant.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. A bear’s head.”

“A bear’s head? Why do you want me to make it?”

“Well, besides Niklaus, you’re the best at carving. And you have blades of your own that you can use to make them, so…”

“So I was your only option to ask.” Finn chuckled. “All right, why should I help you make this pendant?”

“It’s for Erik. He’s been having a hard time lately and I wanted to give him something special. I thought a bear might remind him to have courage and keep his strength.”

Finn smiled. “All right, I’ll help you. Do you have a block of wood already?” Riah nodded, handing it to Finn. “Watch me carefully, okay? One wrong move and you could take off a finger.”

Azariah watched Finn carefully as he carved. She had never really seen him look quite this focused on anything. In seemingly no time at all, he was able to make exactly what Riah had been looking for. He held it up for her careful inspection. She held it in her hands like it would break at any moment. The bear stared ahead somberly, almost calmly, like it really was watching over her.

“So? Final verdict?” Finn asked.

“It’s lovely, Finn, thank you.” She leaned forwards and pressed a kiss to Finn’s cheek before running back to Ayana.

She proudly presented the bear’s head to her mentor. Ayana had been busy herself. Candles were lining the windows and some formed a circle in the main room. All of the furniture had been pushed to the side and her husband had left with their child to give Azariah and Ayana the space that they needed. Ayana held out a small wooden bowl for Riah to put the pendant into. She eagerly did so. This was going to be her first real spell. She was nervous. Ayana set the grimoire on the floor, sitting down with her legs crossed. She reached for two more bowls, one filled with water and the other with earth. She gestured for Riah to sit with her.

“First, you want to light the candles. Remember to breathe,” Ayana instructed.

Riah closed her eyes and focused on all of the candles surrounding her. She pictured them all being lit. When she opened her eyes, they were all alight with tiny, flickering flames. They cast the room in a soft orange glow. She could feel her body growing stronger from the element. 

“Now, present the other two elements to the item you wish to enchant.”

Riah followed every step as Ayana presented them to her, pouring the other two elements in with the pendant. She didn’t let anything break her focus. She looked at the grimoire for the words. As she spoke, the air around them crackled with electricity. It was almost as if they were standing where lightning had struck. The water and dirt started to form a shell around the pendant. The longer she kept going, the more drained she felt but she didn’t let it stop her. It was what Ayana had warned her about. The bear floated slowly into the air. The shell was red hot. As Riah spoke the last few words, the pendant clattered back into the bowl. She closed the grimoire/ She moved to the bowl, gently picking up the bear. The shell had hardened into a shiny metal.

“Well done, Azariah!” Ayana praised.

“How do I know that the spell worked?”

Ayana smiled. “You feel it in your gut. What you’re feeling now - that’s how you know.”

Azariah looked at the pendant. She had done it. She had really done it. Her first real spell had been a success! She thanked Ayana for all of her help and left to find Erik. She had a feeling he’d be with Kol again. She’d pull him away if she had to. She didn’t care. She was too excited to wait. She knew that this gift would bring her brother back to her. It had to.

She was surprised when for once Erik and Kol weren’t together. She wondered if Kol had disappeared into the woods. He knew that Erik wouldn’t follow him there. It was the one place that he was most scared of. The woods were where the wolves hid. Still, she was glad that she didn’t have to pull Erik away from Kol. Kol was certain to make some sort of comments about it later to make Erik angry. Instead, Erik was sitting alone by the White Oak, whittling away at a stick to make a stake for no reason other than he could.

“Erik, can we talk?” Riah asked. Erik looked up and shrugged. “I wanted to give something to you.” She passed the bear pendant to him. 

Erik looked at it curiously. Azariah couldn’t read his expression. She could see that his eyes were getting a little misty. He took a shaky breath before he spoke. “What’s this for?”

“It’s a pendant for good luck. You know, Father gave one to Mother as a wedding present.”

“Father… Riah, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have been such a fool.”

“You don’t need to apologise anymore, Erik. I’ve long since forgiven you.”

“Liar.”

“I would never lie to you, Erik.” Minus a small lie about the pendant, that it. “You know, it’s okay to be sad about what happened.”

“Mikael says otherwise.”

“Mikael isn’t your father. Ours would tell you the same thing. Mother, too.”

“I don’t remember her.”

“You wouldn’t. She died the day you were born.”

“Can you tell me about her?”

Azariah sat down next to Erik, pulling her knees to her chest. There weren’t that many things that Riah remembered, either. She had been five years old when Liv died and Ulric had hated talking about her. He simply wanted to move forward. As Erik had grown up, he never knew anything about her. He just knew that she died when he was born.

“What is there to say about her? Well, I suppose I should start by telling you that you look just like her. She had the same amber eyes you do. Father always used to say her hair shone like gold in the moonlight. Did you know that their marriage was arranged? No, I don’t suppose you would’ve. But despite this, they loved each other. I don’t think they always did, but I can remember the day that I realised it was true.

“It was during one of the harvest festivals when I was maybe four years old. Father was leaning against the White Oak, watching as the rest of the people danced and drank. Mother was among them. When she saw him standing there alone, she pulled him into a dance. I had never seen him dance before. I thought he hated it. Maybe he did, but for her, he would have done anything. He even smiled.”

“Thank you.”

Erik looked at the ground. Riah knew that the pendant wouldn’t fix everything. Well, she thought that she knew that, but when she had first given it to Erik she almost expected it to make a sound or show some sort of sign that it was working instantly. She wanted him to be happy again. She pulled Erik into a hug. He leaned into her touch. Azariah brushed her fingers through his hair. They stayed like that for a while, just sitting and remembering that they were alive now. They just had to remember it.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter includes somewhat graphic descriptions of a werewolf transformation. Beware.

Kol leaned back against the rock. His head touched the ground. He had been watching Riah work for the last several minutes after annoying her into taking him with her. She wanted to focus on what she was writing but Kol kept asking questions or trying to get her to pay more attention to him. He rolled off the rock and walked to Riah. He looked over her shoulder at what she was writing. She continued to do her best to ignore him. He reached down to grab her pen from her. She made it burn his hand before he could even get a grip. Kol jumped back, rubbing his fingers.

“What the hell, Riah? What are you even writing, anyway?” he asked.

“If you must know, it’s a grimoire. I can’t rely on Ayana’s forever. Eventually, she’s going to leave it to her family. I want to have one of my own to pass down myself,” Riah explained. She sprinkled a little bit of sand over the freshly inked pages. “Why do you care so much, anyway?”

Kol shrugged. “Dunno. Call it boredom.”

“Well, that much is obvious.”

Riah went back to writing another spell. It was true that she didn’t know many of them, not nearly as many as Ayana, but she knew enough to fill a decent chunk of the book. She had hoped that by going to this little pond in the woods she’d be able to get some peace and quiet. She should have known better as soon as Kol invited himself to go along with her. He was usually the one in the village causing all of the distractions. He walked around the clearing, kicking the leaves into the air and watching them float back down to the ground. Every time he kicked up a new spot, the air was filled with the sweet smell of the older, decaying leaves and wet moss. When that wasn’t enough to get Riah to turn her attention to him, Kol took to throwing stones into the pond. Finally, she put her pen down.

“If I teach you a spell, will you leave me alone?”

Kol sat down in front of her eagerly. RIah should have known that was what he was really after. Kol had always expressed a sort of interest in magic, but he always seemed too afraid to ask Esther or Ayana to help him. Mikael didn’t really see magic as the most useful or manly thing in the world. He often referred to it as a woman's work. He wanted his sons to wield swords and fight hand-to-hand combat. 

Azariah moved the grimoire to the side.

“All right, sit still, please.” He did as he was told. “Good. Now, I want you to focus on the leaves around us. Really, really concentrate. Imagine them floating around you. Keep the picture in your head. Now, make the leaves float around you.”

“How?”

“You’re a witch, too, Kol. Esther is one, so all six of you are capable of using magic, too. At least, that’s how Ayana explained it to me. So, you just have to want it.”

Kol nodded. He was usually quick to pick up new things. This was, unsurprisingly, no different. Within a few seconds, a small tornado of leaves were circling around the two of them. Kol watched them in amazement. Riah smiled.

“Told you you could do it. Now will you leave me alone to write?”

“Wait! You’ve got to teach me more!”

“I can’t. I barely understand all of this myself. How am I supposed to help you understand it? Go to Ayana or your mother.”

Kol was gone in a flash. It was almost like he had never been there at all. Azariah wiped the leaves off of her grimoire and opened it back up. With Kol gone, she could actually hear the water trickling down the rocks. It was serene. Peaceful. Quiet enough to let her head fill up with thoughts. 

It had been almost five years since her father’s death. In just a few months, she was going to be 15. She had been with the Mikaelsons for such a long time now, she was basically one of the siblings. Esther saw her that way, anyway. Mikael always referred to Riah and Erik as two more mouths to feed. Still, he always made sure that they were fed. If it weren’t for them, Riah and Erik would have been dead a long time ago. It didn’t take a genius to figure that much out. Riah would have let herself starve if it meant that Erik would get even a scrap of food. At least with Mikael, they had food. They even contributed to the village, although some of that was out of fear of being punished. 

Riah knew as those thoughts came into her head that she wasn’t going to get any more work done. She’d just end up in a hole of questions she had no answers to. With a sigh, she closed the grimoire with her pen inside. She carefully packed it away and wrapped up the inkwell with several layers of cloth before placing it in her bag, too. She caught up to Kol on his way to the village and they walked back together.

****

* * *

_”If you see it happen, you won’t be nearly as afraid,”_

Those were the words spinning in Riah’s head as she climbed even higher into the tree. She couldn’t believe that she had let Nik talk her into this, but there she was. Climbing a tree before the moon would reach its apex. Nik was close behind her with a grin on his face. She knew that this wasn’t his first time sneaking out the watch the men transform. He had gone several times since Ulric’s death at the hands of the wolves, oftentimes taking one of his siblings with him. Today, Riah was the unfortunate victim of his persuasion. She couldn’t believe that she was really doing this. It was far too late for them to make it back to the tunnels in time. She had no choice. 

She stopped around the middle of the tree and sat on one of the stronger branches. She clung to the tree like her life depended on it. If they were smelled by the wolves, then it probably would. Nik moved across from her. He had one of Mikael’s knives on his belt. A precaution, he had said. Riah was convinced that Nik was always looking for a chance to prove himself to Mikael. Apparently stealing his knives and getting punished was a part of that. She couldn’t understand the relationship between those two. True, MIkael wasn’t a stellar parent to any of his children, but he was always the hardest on Nik. The cruelest punishments were given to him and him alone. The rest of them would get off with harsh words and maybe a smack or two. Even Kol, with all of his pranks and mischief, never saw Mikael’s sword. Riah had seen Mikael take a blade to Nik in the past. She didn’t know how Nik continued to be such a happy, kind person. She was a little envious of his ability to keep a positive attitude.

“Look, here they come,” Nik said, pointing to a clearing.

It wasn’t exactly easy to see from where they were, but that was a part of the point. They were out of sight and hopefully safe for when they all turned.

One by one, those that had the curse of the wolf showed up to the clearing. There was somber conversation that Riah couldn’t quite make out. A few of them were looking around nervously. Riah wondered if it was their first full moon. Some people set their clothes to the side. Others kept theirs on. It was a mixed bag. 

The first person cried out in pain. He fell to the ground. Riah could hear him cursing as the transformation continued. More bones started to crack. It filled the air with a sickening sound. Some of them screamed. Others had been through it enough times that they saw no reason to. It wouldn’t help them alleviate any of the pain, anyway. Nails elongated, teeth sharpened. Their eyes were flashing yellow and glowing in the growing darkness. It took an hour for the oldest to fully form into the giant wolves. They sniffed around the newer ones. It took hours for the final wolf to appear. The leader of the pack sniffed the air, howled and ran off at impossible speeds.

Azariah was shaking. She was gripping the tree so tightly that her knuckles were white. She could feel the bark digging into her palms. She considered herself lucky that there wasn’t any blood. Nik stood up in the tree. He wanted to know if he could still see the wolves from where they were. They were long gone, searching for humans that weren’t lucky enough or smart enough to hide somewhere. 

Nik and Riah waited until sunrise to get out of the tree. They had to be certain that all of the beasts were human again. Riah hadn’t stopped shaking since the first bone cracked. Nik had been entranced by the whole thing. It was all he was talking about. How many times had he already seen this exact thing? They trudged back to the village. The people were still slowly emerging from the caves themselves. Elijah was already there, looking around the whole village. When he saw Nik and Riah, he headed to them quickly. When he saw Azariah shaking, he knew what had happened. 

“You took her to see the wolves, Niklaus? Did you not see how that might be a problem?!” Elijah was seething.

Nik shrugged. “You and I have watched them dozens of times. It was past time that Riah saw them, too.”

“You’re a fool. Look at her! She’s terrified.”

“No, brother, I am not. I showed her exactly what she needed to see. She can’t live her life ignorant to the things we are made to fear.”

“We fear them for good reason. The wolves do not care if you are human or not. You’re naive to think you’re safe just because you’re in a tree. You could have gotten her killed!”

“Elijah, you are naive if you-”

“Enough!” Riah yelled. “Thank you for your concern for my well being, Elijah, but Nik is right. It was something that I needed to see for myself. That being said, I will never go to see it again. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d really like to go sit down.”

Riah took her leave of the brothers. A small crowd had started to form. They all wanted to know what the three of them had been yelling about. Elijah shot one more glare in Nik’s direction before following Azariah. She was sitting on one of the beds, staring down at her hands. There were more than a few splinters. Tiny droplets of blood had started to form on the walk back. She hadn’t even noticed. She didn’t have the same calluses that Nik did from wielding swords constantly. Elijah took her hands in his own. He gently cleaned the blood and dirt away. It stung a little, but Riah was so lost in thought that she hardly noticed.

She couldn’t get the sounds of their screams out of her head. Elijah worked on getting the last of the splinters out of her palms before placing her hands back in her lap. She wondered what it felt like to have your nails elongate and your hands turn into strong paws. She shuddered again. A sickening thought hit her.

“Is that why Erik stayed behind five years ago? Some others were teasing him for never having seen the men transform. Did he stay to watch them turn into beasts?” Riah pulled her knees to her chest. “He was just a child… he’s _still_ just a child…” She closed her eyes. She tried to picture her father’s face, really picture it, for the first time in a long time. There were no drawings of him anywhere. Erik truly did look just how Riah remembered their mother, but neither of them especially looked like Ulric. She had his dark hair and green eyes, but her features were more rounded than his. She couldn’t remember his face anymore. She couldn’t remember the sound of his voice or his laugh. Not even the warmth she felt when he smiled at her. “I should have been keeping a closer eye on Erik. That was my _only_ job during the full moon - watch Erik. Make sure he was safe and in the tunnels. I thought he’d be right behind me like he always was.”

“You can’t blame yourself for something like that. You were a child, too.”

“Still, I-”

“I’ll hear no more of this. No one could have predicted what would happen that night.”

Azariah wasn’t completely sure that she believed him. It was a long time ago, though, and it wasn’t like she could go back now and change anything. She just had to live with the consequences of her and her brother’s actions. She leaned against Elijah, resting her head on his shoulder. After spending the whole night in a tree, she was exhausted. Elijah hesitated for a moment before he put his arm around her shoulders. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. She felt safe. He rubbed gently circles into her arm. It didn’t take long for her to fall asleep against him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soft moments for soft boys.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I present fluff

The village had one big celebration every year at the end of the harvest. It was the one day off they would all get before winter came. People would talk about it for weeks before it arrived. More hunting parties than usual would go out to get as much meat as they could before the frost hit. Everything else went to the festival. People would all contribute to the growing wood pile for the bonfire. Ayana had asked Kol and Azariah for their help setting up a little bit of magic entertainment for the night. Both of them were eager to help out if it meant that they could hone their magic skills. Rebekah was more than happy to help make the various wreaths and floral arrangements to decorate everything and make it look nice. Even Finn helped out with setting things up, although Riah wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to or because Esther told him too. 

The celebrations and merriment would continue for as long as the fire burned. The entire village was there to watch it be set ablaze, from the oldest warriors to the newborns in their mother’s arms. From there, the next two days or so would be spent in joy and thankfulness that they had survived another year. Women would spend that time looking for suitors without being coy about it. Men would show off to impress them. Those spoken for would reminisce about the years past and their own courting days. It was a good time all around and for the first time in a long time, Azariah found herself actually looking forward to it.

She was 16 years old. It was her turn to start looking for someone to settle down with. Normally, it would be her father or her mother helping her find someone, but she was orphaned and her brother was certainly too young to be making those decisions. Besides that, the people here were, according to Esther, much more lax about it than they had been in the old world. For the most part, she could pick whoever she wanted to be with. He just had to be interested as well and his parents would have to approve of the union. For the most part, it was straightforward.

As it started to get darker, music started to play. Some of the instruments were crudely made but they still produced a sound people could dance to. Rebekah was the first to her feet. Despite only being 11 years old, she had her own trail of boys behind her. Still, she forced Erik to his feet first. Nik grabbed Azariah’s hand and pulled her up.

“C’mon! Dance with me!” he laughed.

Riah smiled and gladly followed the loose steps as best as she could. Nik didn’t let go of her hand the whole time. Riah loved that he almost always had a smile on his face. Whenever he was with his siblings, he was happy. It was infectious. She found herself laughing with him often. Nik had always treated Riah like a sister, even before Esther had taken them in. Of all of the people around her, Nik was arguably her best friend. They danced until they were both out of breath. He finally let go of her with a grin.

“Thank you for indulging me,” he said.

“Thank you for inviting me. You’re an all right dancer, I suppose.”

He chuckled. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

Without another word, he headed off to find another victim. Azariah hardly got a chance to relax before she was pulled into another dance by Kol. Kol was two years younger than her yet he was already getting to the point where he was taller than Riah. She hated it.

“You know, you just keep getting shorter every time I see you, Azariah. Maybe all that magic is stunting your growth,” Kol joked.

“You’d better watch out, Kol. Just because you finally had your growth spurt doesn’t mean that I can’t take you down easily. With or without magic.”

“Feisty,” Kol gave her a quick spin. “But you’re probably right. I’ll do my best to stay on your good side.” He looked around to the other side of the fire. “Am I doing well so far?”

“You’re using me to get someone’s attention, aren’t you?”

“Oh, naturally, Riah. You’re a beauty, no doubt, but you’re like my older sister. Elijah would kill me if I made a move on you.”

“Sure he would. Well, I think one dance is more than enough to make whoever you have your eye on jealous, don’t you?”

“You’re trying to get rid of me.”

“What gave it away?” Riah laughed. 

“Lucky for you, someone more entertaining has joined us.”

Kol winked at RIah and walked away, chasing after whoever he had been talking about. Riah smiled and shook her head. She looked out at the other people dancing. Somehow, Rebekah had convinced Erik to stop sitting around. He didn’t look happy, but Rebekah was clearly enjoying herself. She at least occasionally got Erik to remember he was a kid. Rebekah was the same age as him, maybe a couple of months younger. It wasn’t exactly easy for either of them to get along with the older kids, although that didn’t stop Erik from trying. Rebekah was effectively ignoring the annoyed look on his face. Riah thought it was adorable. Of course she knew _why_ Erik was being extra… himself. The full moon was three days away. He always was jumpy around that time of the month. Azariah hoped this would be enough to make him forget that for a short while.

Elijah was sitting by himself with a goblet in his hand. Riah sauntered over to him and sat down.

“And why, pray tell, are you over here by yourself looking so glum?” Riah asked.

“Do I? I suppose I was just lost in thought.”

“And what was the great Elijah thinking about?”

Elijah chuckled. “About how all the prettiest girls already have their partners and I am left here to sit alone and wallow.”

Riah kept her smile on but she could feel her heart drop at his words. “Well, then, I suppose It falls on me to make you stop sitting around. Come dance with me, Elijah.”

“Oh? I thought you were preoccupied with Niklaus. Or even Kol.”

“I’m not now.” She stood and held out her hand to him. “And I’m not taking no for an answer.”

“Well, then, I suppose that I have no choice in the matter.” Elijah set his glass aside and got up.

He took Azariah’s hand. He gave her a soft twirl before they got closer to the fire. She was the first person he had accepted a dance from. She felt a little honoured by that, even if it was probably because she kind of forced him to. He kept his eyes locked on hers with a smile on his face. She was smiling, too. She couldn’t help it. She was always happiest when she was with Elijah. It didn’t even matter what they were doing. 

Riah tripped over her feet. Elijah caught her easily. He had one hand on her back, the other secure behind her neck. Her heart fluttered. Azariah wondered if this was what her mother felt when she looked at Ulric. She never wanted this moment to end. Elijah brought her back up.

“Are you all right?” Elijah asked. He was barely hiding his laugh.

“Yes, I’m fine. You can laugh,” Riah joked.

He chuckled a little. “Thank you for the dance, Azariah.”

He gave an exaggerated bow and walked away with a smile on his face. Azariah could still feel her heart pounding in her chest as he left. She had fun with Nik and he made her smile, true, but it was never the same as it was when she was with Elijah. No one made her feel that way. Before Azariah could follow him, she was pulled back into a circle of dancing fools by Kol. She had no chance to step away now, not that she even really wanted to. She loved the festival and she was enjoying herself. It felt like it had been a long time since she had been able to do that. No one would ever know just how grateful she was for all of that now. Every moment of happiness was a gift that she was determined to keep.

It took several more rounds of feasting and dancing for Riah to finally break free from Kol and Nik. She was sure that she had even seen Mikael and Esther crack a smile or two. It was hard to believe that in a few days they would be stuck in those dark, damp tunnels again. She shook her head. Happy thoughts only today. She headed off to find Elijah again. Maybe she could bring him into another dance or something similar.

He was sitting alone again, this time a little farther away from the festivities. He had made his way back to the house. She slid down next to him. 

“You’ve run off again.”

“Have I? I just needed a moment of quiet.”

“It is a little rowdy out there.”

“I wanted to talk to you, actually.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, I found something the other day during one of the hunting trips. It made me think of you.” Elijah pulled a stone from one of his pockets. It was smooth, remarkably so, with a hole in the center. “I asked Ayana about it. They’re called hagstones. They’re supposed to protect whoever has them from harm. I want you to take it. I want you to be… safe, when I can’t be there to protect you.”

Azariah rolled the stone in her hands. It was so sweet. She didn’t actually believe that hagstones worked. She wasn’t entirely sure about it, either. Magic was a fickle thing. There were several natural things that had magical properties. Maybe these stones really were. Even if they weren’t, it was sweet of Elijah to bring one to her. He wanted to keep her safe. 

Without really thinking about what she was doing, Riah leaned over and pressed a kiss to Elijah’s lips. It was chaste. It was quick and it was innocent. But it meant so much more than that to Azariah. The moment that her lips touched his, Azariah could feel electricity shoot through her body. It was the only part of their bodies that touched yet it felt like he was touching every part of her body. Elijah didn’t react immediately. Riah stood up and practically ran away. She held onto that stone like it was a part of her she couldn’t bear to lose. She was blushing like a fool. It was the first time she had ever kissed anyone. She had no idea what had come over her. One part of her was so happy that she had done it. The other was beating herself up for being such a fool and doing something so bold.

Erik was a good distraction. She found him hiding out, trying his best to hide from Rebekah. Riah kneeled next to him.

“You can’t hide from her forever, Erik,” Riah joked.

“No, but I can certainly try.”

“She’s a little bit in love with you, isn’t she?”

“Maybe. I don’t know. I didn’t ask for it.”

“True. All right, I’ll distract her, you take the time to run away. Just this once.”

Erik thanked her profusely. She found Rebekah. It didn’t take a lot to get her to forget all about Erik. All Riah had to say was something about Kol planning a prank. Rebekah loved being a part of anything Kol had planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And yet the burn is still _slow_


	7. Chapter 7

The full moon retreat had become a well remembered routine. Everyone would gather up their families, maybe a few blankets or other things to make it a little more comfortable, and start heading to the tunnels. The younger children would make it into a sort of game. Some of them didn’t understand yet why they hid every full moon. Riah was envious of them. She shuddered as she thought about the howls of pain from the men as they turned into beasts. She watched some of them walk past her further into the tunnels. Rebekah, Kol, and Finn walked by her. 

Erik wasn’t with them.

A familiar sense of dread washed over her. He should have been there already. This time, like all the other times, she had pushed him into the tunnels before her to make sure that he was actually there. To keep him safe. She always made sure that he was down there and far enough in that she could still watch up top and help stragglers get in like her father before him. She had seen all of them come in. She hadn’t seen Erik leave but he wasn’t there. She asked a few others if they had seen him, but there was no luck. It was like he had just disappeared. She felt sick to her stomach. She couldn’t get rid of the feeling of dread. If she couldn’t find Erik before the moon reached his apex, she would lose him to. She didn’t think that she could take anymore heartbreak.

Without a second thought, she started to head for the entrance. Mikael’s hand wrapped around her arm, stopping her. He forced Riah to face him. His usual stern look was a thin veil for annoyance and anger. She tried to pull her arm free, but he was stronger than she was. 

“Let go of me,” she said as calmly as she could muster.

“Where do you think you’re going? It’s the full moon,” Mikael responded.”

“If you must know, I’m going to find my brother. You probably hadn’t noticed, but he’s not here.”

“I noticed. I simply refuse to send anyone out to look for him. It’s too close to the time their transformations begin.” Mikael was able to easily push her back. Finn stopped her from falling. She pushed away from him.

“Then we still have time to get him back.”

“No. I will not allow you to make the same foolish mistakes as your father before you.”

The mention of her father turned Riah’s vision red. Her blood was boiling. Mikael was stopping her from saving her only family. She wasn’t entirely sure what came over her, but without thinking or even realising what she was doing, she had stepped forward to confront Mikael. The smack left a sound that echoed through the cave and silenced chatter. A bright red mark in the shape of her handprint was on his cheek. Mikael didn’t hesitate to hit her back, harder. So hard that her head hit the side of the cave. She started to fall to the ground, unconscious. 

When she finally awoke, she wasn’t in the caves any longer. A sunbeam fell over her eyes. She moved away from it. It took her a moment to get used to the light. Her head was pounding and the last thing she wanted to do was get up but when she realised that Erik was still nowhere in sight, she was sitting up straight in an instant. It hurt, but she didn’t care. Esther gently pushed Azariah back into bed. She told Riah to take a deep breath. She had taken quite the blow to the head at the hands of Mikael.

She reached to the side of her head and winced. There were a few bandages there. Esther took Riah’s hand. Esther had a sympathetic look in her eyes that just made Riah’s heart sink. She didn’t want to think about what it meant. Esther brushed back Riah’s bangs.

“How did I get here?”

“Elijah and Finn brought you up when the sun rose. Azariah, you need to understand something,” Esther began.

“Where’s Erik?” She asked.

“Mikael wouldn’t let anyone leave the tunnels before the full moon was gone.”

“Where is he, Esther?”

Esther made Riah open up her hand. She placed a small leather bag there. Azariah hastily opened it. She felt that she already knew what was in it but she wanted it to be a lie. She wanted her imagination to be running wild and for Erik to come running through the front door with a smile on his face. She dumped the contents of the bag into her hand. A choked gasp tried to escape Riah. It was the bear pendant that Riah had made for Erik. 

“Where is Erik?” she asked again. 

She knew that continuing to ask the question wouldn’t change the answer but it stopped her from trying. Esther looked down at the ground.

“Niklaus and Elijah went out after they were sure that you were safe. They hoped, we all hoped, that Erik had hidden away and gotten safe. They weren’t able to find him.”

“No.”

“Elijah was able to find this for you. It was all he was able to find.”

Azariah’s heart broke. It shattered into a thousand pieces that she knew she was never going to put back together. It was losing her mother and her father all over again. She had nothing left. Nothing at all. There was just a hole left. A hole that used to be Riah. Her family had meant everything to her. It took one night for it all to be gone. Esther pressed a kiss to Riah’s forehead and left her alone. She clutched the pendant. It was all she had left. She couldn’t remember what her mother and father looked like. She didn’t want that to happen to Erik, too. She didn’t want to forget him. 

She turned on her side, holding on tightly to the pendant. That was it? That was all that she had left of her little brother? It was supposed to be her job to protect him. She had _promised_ him that she would protect him. She looked at the small necklace. It was meant to bring strength and courage. Where was that strength now? Where was it when Erik needed it most? How was she supposed to have courage when she was all alone? Tears stung against Azariah’s eyes. She let them flow freely as sobs wracked her body. Riah curled up into as tight of a ball as she could. She wanted to make herself so small that she would just disappear. She could find Erik then. Her mother and father, too, and they could be a family. A real family like they were always supposed to be. They would be free from the fear of the wolves and even death itself. They’d be happy.

Riah cried until the tears stopped coming and she was left with a heavy, dead heart. She stared at the wall. She had no energy, no will to do anything else. There was a spot where the caulk had worn away enough that she could just barely see outside. The world was still moving without her. It would continue to move long after she was gone. Long after everyone she knew was gone, too. It was a cycle that they were all stuck in. She clutched the bear harder. It made her hands ting, but at least she was certain it was real. She could still feel things.

Eventually, Mikael forced her to get out of bed. She wouldn’t eat and even when she was in bed, she wasn’t sleeping. She was slowly wasting away. Riah was more of a shadow than a person now.

While she was walking around the house aimlessly on the second day, someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and saw Henrik standing there. 

“Follow me,” he said.

Without another word or even looking back to see if she was following him. She weighed her options and decided to humor him. Whatever it was couldn’t be worse than what she was doing now. Henrik walked straight into the woods. Riah followed. When he finally stopped, they were in a clearing. All of the other siblings were there, too, even Finn. The clearing was flush with blue vervain. Erik’s favourite flower. Niklaus spoke first.

“Riah, you and your brother were, and are, our family. You need to know that we are here for you,” he said.

“We decided that this is where Erik should be put to rest. Nik helped with the headstone,” Rebekah said, “though it was my idea.”

“Azariah, we all promise, here and now, that we will be your family,” Elijah stepped forward and took one of her hands. One by one, they all joined hands in a circle around the clearing, Erik’s headstone between them, “always and forever.”

Azariah’s emotions overwhelmed her. She started crying again. They brought her in for a hug. It made her feel like she couldn’t breathe. Henrik wiped away her tears. He was the youngest of them all and he had more compassion. All of the others spent their time making sure that Mikael’s cruelty didn’t reach him and it showed. Riah brushed his hair away from his face. She looked up at all of them, tears still in her eyes.

“Thank you. All of you, thank you so much,” Riah sniffed.

Elijah looked up. The sun was slowly starting to set. “We should all head back before we’re missed.”

“Wait. Before… before we leave, I just…” Riah looked around at the six of them. Her family. It didn’t lessen the pain of losing Erik, but she could believe that they would lessen the burden. “I won’t wallow in self pity. I can’t promise that I’ll be my old self soon, or even at all, but I can promise that I’ll try harder.”

“We know you will.”

“Besides, if you don’t, we’ll be the ones to knock you on your ass,” Kol winked.

“He’ll knock you down. I can’t stand a damsel in distress.” Nik bowed.

It was all just ridiculous enough to make Riah smile. Not quite a laugh, but it was a start. They all walked back to the village together. Nik and Kol cracked jokes. Elijah just held her hand and kept her close. He was even able to convince her to eat something. It was hard to keep down more than a few bites, but she was at least eating something. It was going to take her one day at a time. It could even take months or years for her to truly stop feeling the affects of life without Erik. She knew that she had the Mikaelsons. She had known it before, of course, but she hadn’t really _known_ it until today. One of them was always there to make sure that she was eating. Someone else would help her with chores or at least make sure that she got out of bed.

She was grateful to them all. She knew that she was never going to be able to repay them. She wasn’t even sure where to begin. For now, she was just going to try and live. For Erik and for them. She had to. She was the last member of her family line and she owed it to them to stay alive and actually live life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well that didn't last long.


	8. Chapter 8

Esther and Mikael called for everyone to dinner. Despite them all still living under the same roof, it was rare for them all to be present for meals. Kol would be off practising his magic, Klaus would usually be practising his carving or training, and Rebekah would be chasing the latest boy in her sights. This was apparently special and they all needed to be there for it. Azariah couldn’t deny that she was curious about it, but she was also pretty certain that whatever it was, it wasn’t good news. Not if Mikael was involved. Still, she went anyway. The consequences would be worse if she didn’t, she knew.

The seven of them sat at the table. Esther and Mikael were standing. The two of them hardly ever seemed to touch each other. Finn said that they had been in love before Freya died. Now, he wasn’t so sure if they still were. Seeing them standing there now, Azariah couldn’t see any love. Duty and pride, but no love. 

“I’m sure you’re all wondering why you’re here now,” Esther began.

“Azariah, you’ve turned 18. We gave you a year because of your brother, but it’s time that you were married,” Mikael butted in. He certainly didn’t sugarcoat it. 

“As such,” Esther shot a glare at Mikael, “and as your guardians, we have found it fit to find you a suitor now.”

The seven of them looked around. Elijah and Riah locked eyes in confusion. Riah was also looking at him in fear. She didn’t want to hear the name that they were going to say. She had a feeling that it wasn’t going to be the one person that she wanted it to be. The other five Mikaelson siblings had helped her get through the year without Erik, but none of them came close to Elijah. He was the one who got her to laugh again. They were closer than Azariah thought she could get to someone.

“We’ve decided that Finn is who you shall marry.”

“What?!” Finn, Azariah, and Elijah said in unison.

The three of them exchanged glances.

“Father, surely you can’t be serious,” Finn said. “Riah and E-”

“Enough! There will be no arguing this point. The two of you make a strong match and it only makes sense, given that you have yet to take a wife at your age, my son.” Mikael’s glare was enough to shut everyone up. “The decision has been made. Finn and Azariah are to be married before the week’s end.”

Esther shot a sympathetic look to Azariah. Elijah was staring at the table. Riah looked at Finn. His expression was just as stern as it had ever been. This wasn’t what she wanted. She looked to any of the others for help. Now was she to marry a man that she didn’t love? The brother of the man she was most certain that she _did_ love, at that? Surely, Mikael wasn’t oblivious to the fact that Riah and Elijah were close to one another. Why, then, did he choose Finn? Why did he get to choose at all? Riah stood from the table, ready to provide her own protest. Mikael stood tall with an icy gaze.

“As your guardians, we must act in your best interests, Azariah,” Esther said, resting her arm on Riah’s shoulder. “Perhaps you are still too young to understand why this decision was made, but one day you shall.”

Elijah muttered a quiet congratulations before leaving the house. Azariah moved to follow him. Nik grabbed her arm and shook his head. This wasn’t something that she could make better. Nik knew better than the others how Riah and Elijah felt about each other. She knew that he was too afraid to say anything to Mikael. Slowly, the rest of the family left until it was just Riah and Esther standing alone.

“Why Finn?” She asked. “Not to be ungrateful for all you’ve done for me, but _you_ at least must know the truth.”

Esther sighed. “It’s because of Ayana, Azariah. I asked her to look into the future of you and Elijah before we talked about this. She saw nothing but blood and death. This is for your protection, just as much as his. You and Finn will be good to each other, there is no doubt, but you must let go of Elijah. Trust me, Azariah. It is for the best.”

Esther left Riah alone. She couldn’t believe that Ayana was right. How could a life with someone she loved be so terrible? She didn’t want to marry Finn but it was painfully obvious that she would never allow her to marry Elijah. She wasn’t sure if she should have just resigned herself to her fate. It didn’t seem right/ She could always try to convince Elijah to run away with her, but he would never leave his family. Riah was certain that she couldn’t leave them, either. She’d miss them all far too much. She crossed her arms. A potentially bloody future with Elijah or a secure one with Finn. She knew which one she wanted to have. She _wanted_ to find Elijah and ask him to run away anyway.

She couldn’t force him into that future. If there was even the possibility that Elijah would be harmed if she went to him, then she wouldn’t risk it. She couldn’t. He would be happy with someone else, she was certain of it. Riah sat down. It was just the way that this would have to be. She could learn to love Finn, just like how her mother had loved her father. It would take time, but it would happen. She had to believe that it would, just to make it bearable. Riah walked outside to Finn. He looked down at her.

“Riah, you know that I… if there was any way that you and Elijah could…” he began.

“Don’t apologise, Finn. I’ll marry you. I like you well enough and Mikael is right. We’re a strong match.”

“I see.”

Finn didn’t say anything else. Neither did Azariah. She didn’t know what to say. She had made up her mind.

****

* * *

****

In less than three days, it was the day of the wedding. Elijah had all but stopped talking to Riah. She hadn’t seen him since she had said that she would marry Finn. She wasn’t even sure that he was still in the village. Even if he was, Riah wouldn’t have seen him. As per tradition, she spent the days leading up to the wedding with all of the women in the village that were already married. They did their best to prepare her for her duties as a wife. Esther, Tatia, Ayana, and a couple of other women were her “escorts”. 

Esther took Riah to talk to her alone. Azariah couldn’t imagine why she would want to. After all, Riah had already settled into marrying Finn. She had to know that Riah had no desire to be friendly with her future mother-in-law. Still, she insisted that they take this detour from normal wedding tasks. 

Esther took Azariah back to the house. She had her stand still while she looked for something. Azariah waited as patiently as she could. She just wanted this to be over with at this point. Esther walked back to where she and Mikael slept. She leaned down to the chest. After a few minutes of rifling around, she pulled out a small object wrapped in old cloth. She handed it to Riah expectantly. She carefully unfolded the cloth to see the silver circlet, spun intricately to look like the twigs and leaves of the forest. A wedding crown.

“Your mother’s wedding crown. Liv was… she was a very good friend of mine when she was alive. I saved this for you so that you might wear it one day at your own wedding,” Esther explained. “She would have been so proud of you now.”

“I’m not so sure about that. How can you be sure that she wouldn’t tell me to follow my heart?”

Esther brushed Riah’s hair away from her face. She took the crown in her hands and set the circlet on her head. “She would have told you the same thing that I am. You are going to be a good wife, Azariah, and Finn will be a good husband. Now, I don’t expect you to know the full duties of being a wife. I admit that I was lacking in that department. You spent more time with Ayana than you did learning what would be expected of you. However, it is also different here than it was in the old world. I’ll do my best to tell you know.”

For three days, Azariah listened to Esther, Tatia, and all the others tell stories about what they did and what she would be expected to do. It was all things that ultimately meant one thing: she wouldn’t have the same freedom that she had had before. Her magic studies would have to be put to a halt while she… started a family of her own. Children. Riah shuddered at the thought. She was nowhere near ready to have children but it would be expected that they started a family sooner rather than later. The only person that was a little more reluctant to talk about it than Azariah was expecting was Esther. She was the only one that told Riah it might be better to wait, much to the chagrin of the others.

****

* * *

****

The day of the wedding was there too soon. In the past, it would have taken years for the wedding to be planned, the bride’s ale to be made, and all of the other certainties accounted for. That was in the old world. Now, things were much quicker. Weddings were quick because they truly never knew when the other would die from some disease or the wolves. So it was upon them. Azariah had been dreading the day and now that it was here, she was calm. She had come to terms with what she was doing and who she was doing it for. Images of a future of death fueled her nightmares and only solidified her decision. There was no backing out of it now. Not when the whole village would be watching them and waiting for vows to be exchanged.

Just as the sun began to arise, Riah was greeted by Tatia. The two women walked to a pond that had been made as private as it possibly could for bathing. Tatia helped Riah wash through her long dark hair until it was glistening and smooth. When that was finished, Ayana and Esther arrived to help arrange her hair in intricate braids. Some of the braids were tighter than others. One came around to form a circlet around her head where her wedding crown would rest comfortably. Each loop, every weave, was placed carefully to form a design. By the time they were done, the hair that usually fell to her lower back barely came to rest against her shoulders. She caught a glimpse of herself in the smooth reflection of the water. She could barely recognise the person before her. It was probably the last time that her hair would look like this. It was an important day, after all.

Ayana presented Riah with the dress she would wear. It was made of the finest material they had, which wasn’t saying much. It was a rich blue colour. Riah wondered if they had enchanted it to get that colour. It was ultimately easy to put on compared to how much effort had gone into her hair. She was dressed, prepped, and ready for the final steps. Esther placed the silver crown on her head and smiled at Riah.

“You look beautiful,” she said.

“Thank you,” Riah’s voice was flat.

Are you nervous?” Tatia asked.

Riah thought about it for a moment before she answered. “No. I’m not. Finn will be a good husband. A strong husband.”

“I grabbed these for you, Azariah.” Ayana held up two items. “Your father’s sword and the ring he wished you to give to your husband one day.”

Azariah held the sword thoughtfully. Her father’s sword. Erik was meant to inherit it originally. Now, it would be used to represent how Riah and Finn would protect one another. How their families would protect each other. She carefully affixed the ring to the hilt and nodded to the others. She was ready to be led to her future now. She was dressed properly and now she had the only items that she was going to need.

Finn and Riah were escorted by their respective parties, Finn’s being made of all the married men in the town, right in front of the White Oak Tree. They exchanged their swords, both with rings on the hilt. They were both simple rings of metal with runes etched in for luck. It was quick. A lot quicker than Riah thought it would have been. Finn leaned down and kissed her. It felt flat and a little cold. Their first kiss as husband and wife. 

The start of her new life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Viking wedding traditions are very, very intricate and I did not go into nearly as much detail as they deserve. It used to take up to 2 years to plan the wedding just to make the honey mead alone! The man would go to his family's tomb and take a sword from one of his ancestors. It's really, really cool and I'm planning on doing more research into it after this.


	9. Chapter 9

Riah walked with Rebekah by her side. Since she had gotten married to Finn three years ago, Rebekah had gotten closer to Riah. Elijah had been… avoiding her, for the most part since even before the wedding. Riah looked at the ring on her finger. It felt heavier than it was. She shook her head and sighed. Things always changed. Nothing could stay the same forever and she knew that Elijah was a… childhood romance that was never going to amount to anything. She and Finn had started to love each other after a while. It wasn’t perfect and it definitely wasn’t easy. Still, they were both trying their best and she liked to think that it was working. Rebekah was talking about one of the boys she’d started courting. She was 16 so now it was her time to start looking for a husband. Riah had no doubts that Rebekah could love anyone that she wanted to. She was a romantic, that much was certain.

Azariah watched Nik and Tatia walk across town together. She raised an eyebrow. “Nik and Tatia are getting rather close, aren’t they?” 

“Have you not noticed that the two of them have been inseparable for the past few months? I even heard Niklaus talking to Mother about marriage,” Rebekah said.

“Marriage? I truly never thought I’d see the day that Nik wanted to get married. He won’t be able to live that warrior’s life he wants so much.”

“But he _has_ loved her for ages.”

“Every man in town loves her. Why wouldn’t they? She is beautiful.”

“I think she’s just looking for someone to help take care of her son. I don’t think she could ever love someone like she loved North.”

“You’re probably right, yes, but that may not be such a…” Riah watched as Tatia’s eyes followed Elijah chopping firewood, her arm tight around Nik’s, “bad… thing. You don’t necessarily need to be _in_ love to have love. Besides, I refuse to believe that everyone has only one love in life and I refuse to believe that that love is instantaneous. Take a look at Finn and I. We… we love each other.”

“Of course, I didn’t mean to imply that… sorry.”

Riah didn’t say anything. The whole Mikaelson family knew that Finn and Riah had started out with a… strained relationship. The first few months of their marriage they had hardly talked to one another and they tried to keep things the way that they had been before. It didn’t take too long for them to realise that just wasn’t going to work. They talked and they worked and they did their best to try. They wanted to be there for each other as husband and wife. That was what they were supposed to do and they had a good relationship now.

She still had to admit that watching Tatia look at Elijah that way hurt her. She pressed herself into the idea that it was only because of how Tatia was following Nik yet looking at Elijah. She didn’t want anyone in her family to get hurt, least of all Niklaus. He had been through enough in his life. She hoped Tatia wouldn’t do anything to hurt Niklaus. Watching them walk now she hoped that more than anything. Nik looked so… happy to have her on his arm. No one was going to tell him the way that she watched Elijah. His jealousy probably wouldn’t stop even if it was his brother. And Elijah wouldn’t even make a move on Tatia, not with the way that she was acting around Nik in front of everyone.

Not that Riah really knew Elijah anymore. He had been avoiding her for three years now. Since the wedding, they had maybe said a few sentences to each other in total. He was always hunting or training or doing anything that was far away from Azariah and Finn. That hurt, too. Elijah used to be her closest friend. She could always rely on him to help her and be there when she needed someone to talk to. It hurt to lose that for any reason. It hurt worse to lose it because of something she thought would help them both in the end. Those things that she used to rely on Elijah for were supposed to fall to Finn. In some ways, they did. He just wasn’t as open and, well, friendly as Elijah was.

She looked over at Finn. He was working on getting things together for dinner. Ingredients Esther had told him to get, Riah was sure. He still did almost everything she told him to do. Riah wasn’t really surprised. He had always been the closest to his mother. He had been there when Freya died. They had moved here to protect him just as much as it had been to protect their future children. Given how cold Mikael and Esther had become after that, she could only imagine the things that Finn was trying to hold onto. He wouldn’t tell her about them. He had been so young when they left and he wasn’t really one to talk about things like that anyway. He wasn’t really one to talk at all.

****

* * *

****

“I don’t know, Ayana, this just doesn’t seem to be working. I don’t know what’s wrong with me today,” Riah sighed. She set her grimoire to the side. “My magic has been… off recently.”

“Off?” Ayana barely looked up at her.

“It feels like I’m missing something. I don’t know, it doesn’t really make sense.”

Ayana finally looked to Azariah. “Riah, I feel that I should tell you-”

“You’re lying!”

Ayana was cut off by Niklaus screaming something at someone. Riah closed her grimoire and headed outside. If Nik was yelling then she feared for whoever was on the other side. She and Ayana both ran outside. It certainly wasn’t a sight Riah thought that she would ever see in her life. Niklaus’s rage was directed at Elijah, of all people. 

“Niklaus, I have no idea what you’re talking about!”

“You have been making moves for Tatia behind my back! There’s no use denying it, _brother_.” He lunged at Elijah, hitting him pretty well in the face.

Elijah stood at the ready, prepared to fight for real this time. Nik, probably without thinking, drew his sword. That was the point at which Azariah knew she needed to step in. She pushed her way between the brothers, disregarding the sword and anger that was radiating off of both of them in waves. She turned to Nik first, a hand on his chest to try and keep him pushed back and away from his brother.

“Enough! From both of you! Nik, do you honestly believe Elijah would do that to you?”

Nik looked back and forth between Riah and Elijah. “No.”

“Take a breath and think about it, then. Put away your sword.”

“Niklaus.” Esther walked to them both. “Where is your sparrow?”

“What?”

“Your necklace. Where is it?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then perhaps you should find it.”

Niklaus stalked off towards the house. Esther was very good at getting Nik to leave dangerous situations. She knew the right things to say to distract him. She shook her head at Elijah and went to help her younger son. Riah looked over at Elijah. A small stream of blood was starting to come from his nose. She chuckled a little and moved to wipe it away. Elijah caught her wrist before she could get to close. For the first time in a long time, she looked into his eyes. She couldn’t tell what was there. It was a storm of emotions that she couldn’t get a read on.

“I can take care of myself.” He pushed her hand away and walked in the opposite direction of Niklaus.

Riah’s heart strained in her chest. She wanted things to go back to the way that they had been before. There was nothing more that she could say or do. It would probably just end up making things that much worse. She took a breath.

****

* * *

****

Tatia and Niklaus had their wedding and their celebration was enough to rival the harvest festival. Tatia wasn’t one to make things subtle. She perhaps wanted to show people that even though she had been married before, she could do it again. The fight between Elijah and Niklaus had spread through the town like a wildfire. Rumour mills kept spinning stories about what it could have been that caused the fight in the first place. Esther had pushed for this wedding to happen that much sooner because of it. Despite Tatia’s attachment to Elijah, she still had a sort of calming effect on Niklaus. Riah had to admit that Nik had more high strung than usual. She didn’t know what was causing it. She hoped that Tatia would continue to be a gentle force.

Plus, it would be good for Nik to be a father for a while. He would be a better one than Mikael. Not that it was hard to beat him in that regard. The kid got along well with Nik already. It was good for him. It would help make him a better person in the end. She really hoped it did, anyway. They could have picked a better day, of course, but she could overlook that for them. Azariah looked over at Finn. He was sitting alone, which wasn’t unusual for him. She smiled and walked over to him.

“Are you going to sit there this whole time or are you going to ask me to dance?” She asked.

Finn chuckled and shook his head. “All right. For you, Azzie.”

She pulled him to his feet and led him over to the small crowd of people already dancing. Wedding celebrations were always like this. Lots of drinking, dancing, eating, and, of course, throwing around insults and the like. It was all good natured, she supposed, but it was mostly just people who needed to blow off some steam. Finn stepped on Riah’s feet again. She laughed it off again. He wasn’t a great dancer, but they were having a good time. Those moments were real and Riah relished them. She still felt like there was something wrong with her. Finn was a lovely man but she had a hole in her heart and she couldn’t find out what was causing it.

Finn turned in early, like he usually did, leaving Azariah to fend for herself. She really didn’t feel like sticking around the festivities anymore but she didn’t want to go home yet, either. There was really only one person in the entire world that she wanted to talk to - Erik. The closest that she could get was going to his grave. She did that more often than she cared to admit, especially in the last few years. There was something comforting about talking to no one in particular while also wishing that somewhere, somehow, Erik was listening to her. 

His grave was thankfully a quiet place. The Mikaelson siblings had picked well. She had been a little preoccupied with her own sadness to do it herself. And today… well, today she needed to be there more than ever.

“Ah, it seems we had the same idea.”

Riah turned. Elijah was leaning against a tree, the trace of a smile on his face. He had a small ring of vervain in his hands.

“The anniversary of his death. You brought flowers,” Riah said softly. “Thank you.”

“He was like a brother to me, Riah. Of course I did.” Elijah walked over and set the flowers down on the grave. “How are you holding up today?”

Riah took a deep breath. She looked down at the small headstone. Nik had done a beautiful job with it. “I’m surviving.”

“I take it my older brother hasn’t said anything.”

“To be fair to Finn, there have been more important things going on today.”

“Ah, yes, Niklaus’s wedding. Maybe Tatia will be enough to get him going the right direction.”

“Or they’ll both drive each other insane and she’ll end up killing him.”

Elijah chuckled. “That is also a possibility.”

“This is the most that you and I have talked in a long time, Elijah. I miss it.”

“I do, too. It’s just… too hard, Azariah. I’m sorry.”

He leaned down and pressed a kiss to her cheek before he walked away from the gravesite. She watched him go. He was right. It was too hard. She hadn’t realised just how much she had missed speaking to him. Azariah shook her head. One day, they could repair that friendship. She knew that they could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like it says in the tags: 1,000 years of pining and all I got was this stupid t-shirt.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year! Let's hope 2021 is something better. Just one day better than 2020. Please.

“Mother!” 

Nik’s pained voice rang through the village. Everyone had just started their return from the tunnels. Azariah and Finn exchanged looks before leaving their house. A strangled gasp escaped Riah when she saw Henrik’s lifeless body in his arms. He was covered in blood. His head was just… hanging there. It was horrifying. Nik fell to the ground with his brother in his arms, still. Esther ran to her youngest son and took him into her arms. She brushed his hair away from his face. She yelled for Ayana. Rebekah wasn’t far behind. Elijah, too. Practically the whole village had already arrived. Rebekah went to Nik’s side, comforting him as best she could.

“Ayana, please. Is there anything you can do?”

Ayana ran her hands over Henrik’s body. She shook her head. “The spirits will not give us a way, Esther. I’m sorry.”

“No. No!” Esther cried.

“Your boy is gone.”

Esther’s cries rang through the air. Riah couldn’t bear to hear it. She turned to Finn’s arms. She did everything in her power not to picture Erik there on the ground, covered in blood and bite marks and claw marks and just… so pale. So, so pale. She couldn’t take it anymore. She couldn’t take all of this death at the hands of the wolves. They had lost so much. How much more did they have left? Riah couldn’t even imagine what Mikael would do when he got here and he heard about what had happened. There was no doubt that all the blame would fall to Niklaus. Riah would be lying if a part of her didn’t blame Nik herself. Not a big part, but enough that she knew for a fact Mikael would. He would probably kill Niklaus as a punishment. 

Riah walked to Nik and kneeled before him. She took his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her. Tears were flowing freely from his eyes. Henrik and Nik had been the closest of them all. Riah shook her head. She pulled Niklaus into a hug. She ran her fingers through his hair. She wanted this to be okay. She wanted this to be a dream. She knew that it wasn’t, of course. She could still hear the sounds of bones cracking. Three deaths at the hands of the wolves. Three deaths of her loved ones. She hated it. She hated the curse of the moon and she hated that she couldn’t even be mad at the men that turned into beasts because they had no control over what they became and how they acted. It wasn’t fair. None of this was fair. Henrik’s life had just begun. He should have had more time. He deserved more time.

That night, she sat alone and wondered what their family, what her family had done to cause all of this. She wasn’t one to fully accept fate as fact, but it couldn’t all be random chance, either. Not with all the tragedy that kept on forcing its way into their lives. It seemed to be centered around them all and it hurt. It felt like her heart was shattering over and over again and she couldn’t do anything to stop it or make it better.

Mikael, surprisingly, didn’t kill Niklaus. He wasn’t happy with him, either, but he didn’t kill him which was a start. Henrik was buried close to Erik. Finn, Mikael, and Elijah were the ones who buried him. No one else could bring themselves to do it or even go. Niklaus and Rebekah did their best to comfort Esther but something in her had changed. She wasn’t herself. It was like a switch had been turned and she didn’t know what to do. Esther locked herself away in the house. She wouldn’t see any of them for any reason. Riah had no idea what she was doing in there but she knew that it couldn’t be a good thing.

Finn was more withdrawn than usual, even with Azariah. He had lost his older sister and now his youngest brother. She didn’t have the words. She couldn’t even begin to find them. She tried, not just for him, but for herself, too. She needed to try, at least, and stand tall for them the way that they had for her when Erik died. When her father died, too. She just didn’t know what he needed from her. 

A few days after Henrik was buried, Esther invited them all to a dinner in celebration of his life. It didn’t sit right with Riah. Esther was too calm about it all. It almost seemed like she had completely forgotten what had happened to Henrik or at the very least moved on from it. Azariah didn’t like it, but she went because it was the right thing to do. Henrik had been a little brother to Riah. She had done her best to keep him safe the same way that she had for Erik. Unfortunately, she’d failed again. She was barely keeping her head afloat, let alone that of her husband. She couldn’t save Esther from herself, either. Niklaus came without Tatia. She had stayed home with her son. He was still new to the idea of death. He wasn’t fully sure of what happened to Henrik.

Mikael poured all of them wine. It was rare that he brought out something other than the usual ale. Riah stared into the dark red liquid. She had always thought that it looked too much like blood and it was far too bitter for her taste.

“For Henrik,” Mikael said. 

He held his glass into the air. The rest of them followed in suit. He took the first drink. Esther looked at all of her children expectantly. One by one, the six of them took sips of their wine. It tasted as bitter as Riah remembered but there was something else, too. Something… metallic? She wasn’t quite sure how to describe the taste. It was just different. Mikael set his glass on the table and excused himself. Riah watched him leave the room. She set her own goblet down. Before she could turn and ask Esther why she had gathered them all, she felt unimaginable pain in her back. It ran through her body and to her chest. She looked down. Mikael’s sword was in her chest. She fell forward against the table, but she didn’t die right away. She listened to her family’s cries of protest. Not one of them could move while Mikael went around the table, killing each one of them in turn. Riah reached out across the table, looking at Elijah as he fell off of his chair and finally, finally, she died.

Azariah woke up gasping for air in someone’s arms. She ran her hand over her chest, feeling for a wound or a sword. She found blood and ripped cloth, but her skin was intact. She looked at the person holding her. Elijah had taken her into his arms. He brushed her hair away from her face. He looked worried. Her head was throbbing and she was hungry. So hungry. The light from the candles hurt her eyes. It had never bothered her before.

“You woke up! I was so worried…” Elijah held her closer.

“What happened to us?” She whispered. “How are we still alive?”

“I don’t know. Mother must have done some kind of spell. I…”

Mikael burst into the room. He was dragging a man along with him. Azariah vaguely recognised him. She didn’t have time to place him before Mikael had him dropped to his knees. He drew his blade against the man’s arm. The blood started to drip to the floor. Azariah knew that this was wrong, but she couldn’t help it. She was so, so hungry and for some reason, the smell of the blood was so overwhelming...

“Drink!” Mikael ordered.

He pushed the wound towards Riah. She couldn’t help herself. She drank the blood and it was the most amazing thing she had ever tasted. She didn’t want to stop. Elijah stared at her for a moment before he did the same. Riah could feel a sharp pain in her mouth and her vision turned red. All she could think about was the blood. She wanted, no, she _needed_ more of it.

Azariah was horrified with herself. She pushed the man away and jumped, or ran, to the otherside of the room. Her speed wasn’t natural and she still couldn’t get the smell of blood away from her. The taste of it was still in her mouth. She _loved_ it and she hated that she did. She looked down at Elijah, still drinking the blood. He looked up. 

“Elijah… your… your face… it’s…”

She didn’t know how to describe it. The veins under his eyes and… his teeth… she had never seen anything like it. Elijah stood up from the body. He looked just as shocked as Azariah felt. What had come over them? She wiped the blood from her lips and looked at Mikael. He seemed… proud. Elijah started to make his way over to Riah and she could feel her heart pounding against her chest, but Finn was starting to wake up. Azariah looked away from Elijah and moved to her husband. Yes. Her husband. She needed to be there for him and not be so concerned with Elijah. Finn looked around the room wildly. After a while, Esther came back into the room.

“You’re all safe now,” she said, “we have no more need to fear the wolves or anything else. My family, eternal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so the vampirism begins.


	11. Chapter 11

It was maddening. She could hear _everything_. No matter how far away she was from the walls, no matter how hard she tried to cover her ears, she could hear it all. From the neighbours arguing about something trivial to the sound of children outside playing despite the darkness. Even the cracks and pops of the dying fire from the burning tree made so much noise. It was all that she had known for two days. It was driving her mad. She didn’t leave the house. She was afraid of what she might do. Esther had vaguely explained what she had created, but Riah had been too focused on the sound of Esther’s heart beat to pay attention to what she was saying. The only thing she was really aware of was the hunger.

She was used to the simple pangs of hunger in the winter. That didn’t even hold a candle to what she felt now. It was like her stomach was trying to eat itself and the only thing that she wanted was blood. Oh, even now, days later, she could taste the blood on her lips. She could feel it running down her throat and she wanted it. The small amounts Mikael would bring them wasn’t nearly enough. She could still feel the hunger. It was insatiable. And the blood… it was so close. _Esther_ had so much of it. All it would take…

No. No! She kept on having those thoughts. Images of her friends dead by her hand. Blood everywhere and all she wanted was more. More blood. More death. More pain. All of those fantasies begged for her to leave the house and let loose. Give in to the urge to feed. She _needed_ more blood and she needed it all the time. It was the only thing she could think about. It was driving her mad. She refused to leave the house out of fear. When she wasn’t thinking of all the horrible ways she could kill people or blood, she was seeing Elijah’s face. His eyes… and they had fangs, now. Not all the time, but they were still there. Riah could have sworn that she could feel them there, like they were lying in wait until they found what they wanted.

It was more than hearing and hunger that had increased. It was as if everything had been magnified. The feelings she had long since buried for Elijah had come bursting forward stronger than ever. The grief of Henrik had all but multiplied. She had no clue how she could get past such sadness. At one moment, she would feel the urge to cry and then suddenly she’d be in a fit of laughter over nothing. Her emotions were all over the place. She had no control.

She reached for the pendant around her neck. She needed its strength now more than ever. 

Azariah forced herself to her feet. There was no use sitting around and moping. She could at least try to be active, even if it was just walking around the house. It was because of Rebekah that they knew they couldn't walk in the sun. It burned their skin, but they healed as quickly as it burned. Riah had checked. Her curiosity had gotten the best of her and she wanted to know just how far they could go before they would die. The only thing she really got from it was a confirmation that, yes, the sun burned, they could heal quickly, and the sun wouldn’t kill them. She had stayed out there until Elijah had forced her back inside. The lecture she had gotten was one of his longest yet.

Of course, it had to be Elijah that pulled her back from the sunlight. Finn had become… someone else entirely. He barely refused to eat even the small amounts of blood that Mikael offered. More often than not, he was calling them all abominations and begging Esther for a way to reverse the spell. He was miserable. He was disgusted by their need to drink human blood to survive and he thought them all a disgrace. An unkillable disgrace. Elijah had no choice but to step up and take care of them. Niklaus and Kol, on the other hand, were enjoying their newfound immortality whenever they could. They wanted to test the limits of their new powers. A part of Riah wanted that, too, but she was more scared about what she might end up doing by accident. She didn’t know her own strength.

Still, she couldn’t stay in that house forever. It was suffocating her, slowly but surely. That night, she listened carefully to make sure that there wasn’t anyone walking around before she left. She wanted to be alone. She needed the fresh air. She was right in thinking that it would do her some good. She was already starting to feel like herself. Riah took a deep breath. It was good to get away from Finn’s constant complaining. She turned her wedding ring on her finger. Even if he did hate it so much, did he have to be so loud about it all? It wasn’t like any of them had asked to be turned into… whatever it was that they were. 

A twig snapped to her right. Without even really thinking about it, Riah rushed to the sound. She was greeted by a young girl that had been walking to her home. She’d tripped and fallen to the ground. 

“Are you all-” Azariah’s question ended abruptly.

The smell was overpowering. Blood. There was a small cut on the girl’s knee. Riah wasn’t sure how she knew that, but she did. She had those images of death again. Her vision turned red and she could feel her fangs coming out. A voice in the back of her mind told her to feed. Grab the girl and drink. Drink until she couldn’t anymore. It didn’t take long for that little voice to become Azariah’s own. She grabbed the girl, covering her mouth to stop her screams. Riah sank her teeth into the soft flesh of her neck. Instantly the blood started to flow into her mouth. The hunger she was so used to began to subside as she drank more. She was feeling stronger. Much stronger than she had ever felt before. 

She didn’t let go. She _couldn’t_ let go. The taste of the blood was so intoxicating. She wondered why she had let herself go this long without it. The poor girl had never stood a chance. Azariah was in control of whether or not this person, this life, would continue. The more blood she drank, the more she could sense it. The life draining from the girl so Azariah could be strong. It was a beautiful cycle. How hadn’t Azariah seen that before? The sensation lasted for an eternity and Riah never wanted it to end.

She was ripped away from the girl. Riah turned and bared her teeth at the one who had pulled her away from her meal. It was Elijah. He was breathing heavily, doing his best to control his own lust for blood. She looked behind him and saw Finn in the doorway. The disgust was apparent on his face. The red started to fade from Azariah’s vision. The bloodlust faded. She looked down at the girl she had drank from. It wasn’t a friend. She hadn’t even known her name but that didn’t matter. 

She was dead.

She was dead and Azariah had been the one who killed her.

It crashed over her like a wave. She killed someone. Because of her and her bloodlust this girl was dead on the ground. Riah collapsed. Elijah forced Azariah to look him in the eyes. He was struggling, too. He wiped some of the blood off of her face. Blood was still on her face. He helped her back to her feet and took her inside. Finn was gone. Good. Riah didn’t want him to see her like this anymore. She didn’t want to look at the disappointment in his face. She didn’t want all of that disgust thrown at her. She knew that the relationship she had with Finn wasn’t exactly _love_ in the sense of romance, but at least he made it seem like he cared in the past. Whatever fragile love they had built up over the four years was gone in seconds.

Elijah led her back into the house. He was muttering something to her softly but she wasn’t paying attention. She was staring at the blood on her hands, literally and figuratively. She’d killed that girl and it felt _good._ She had liked it. Loved it, even. Even now that she was far away from it, she could remember just how amazing it was. And she was ashamed of herself. Elijah asked Nik and Kol to take care of the body. He sat Riah down and grabbed a bowl of water. He started to wipe the blood away from her face. She stared at the ground.

“What have we become?” she whispered.

“Nothing that we can’t handle.”

“I just killed someone, Elijah. An innocent.”

He sighed. “I know. I also know that you didn’t mean to. Look at me.” She looked into his dark eyes. They were filled with his concern for her. He rested his hand on her cheek. “You will learn to control this. We all will.”

Elijah ran his thumb across her cheek. He got up and carried away all of the things he had used to clean her up. Her dress was ruined by all of the blood. She shook her head, trying to get rid of the memory. It was never going to go away. Not the thoughts, not the memories, and not even the hunger. She was already starting to feel the urge to feed again. That was going to be her life now. Feed, kill, regret, repeat. How much more of it could she take before she became a different person entirely? She already didn’t feel like herself. She couldn’t explain it. Obviously, she had never wanted to kill someone before, but even beyond that…

Maybe Finn was right to hate what they were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soft moments for soft peeps


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will pick up at season 2 of TVD. So spoilers for that, I guess? But if you're reading this, you've probably seen at least most of that show so... yeah.

Azariah carefully set down the bouquet of vervain on her brother’s grave. The flowers burned to the touch, no matter how much of it was present. That wasn’t going to stop her from giving them to Erik and Henrik. Absent-mindedly, Riah rubbed the pendant. She had been doing that so much recently that the little carvings of fur were completely smoothed over. It was the second time that she had been out in the sun since Esther’s spell. She had made them rings of silver and lapis lazuli about a week after they’d turned, hoping that some kind of normalcy would help them move forward with their lives. With their cravings. Those were the things that she wouldn’t say. She had made them stronger, yes, but it had come with a price. Every strength came with another weakness.

They were faster, stronger, and so much more. They could hear someone’s heartbeat from a distance, get from one side of the village to the other in an instant. But they couldn’t go out in the sun without the rings. The vervain that had grown around the base of the White Oak burned to the touch. They couldn’t enter the homes of the people they used to know unless they were invited in. Not to mention the hunger that never seemed to end. Riah had been working on controlling it. Since she’d killed that girl, she had vowed not to let the hunger control her anymore. It was harder than she thought it would be. She knew that it would take more than a couple of days. She had been avoiding feeding but she couldn’t do that forever.

There were no words for how grateful she was that Erik was dead now. It was a feeling that she never thought she’d have, but she’d rather have him dead than be whatever it was that she had become. His death was a blessing now that Esther had cast her supposed “Immortality” spell. He would never feel this hunger. He would never crave blood. She looked at Henrik’s grave. 14 years old when he died. Too young. She hoped that wherever the dead went, they couldn’t see this world. 

Riah started walking. She no longer feared the woods. Even if it was the full moon, the wolves couldn’t hurt her or her family anymore. She wasn’t ready to go home, anyway. No one outside of the family would talk to any of them. On top of that, Finn would be there and he wouldn’t talk to her anymore, either. Azariah had tried a few times to start a conversation but he just… wasn’t having it. He didn’t want anything to do with her. It was like she ceased to exist in his eyes. It hurt. She just wanted a few moments here in the woods before she had to go back to trying to prove herself to him again. They were still married. She looked at her wedding ring. She wore her daylight ring on the left hand as well. They sat next to each other, representing two parts of her life. A before and an after.

Riah stopped when she found herself at the pond. That place used to bring her so much peace. She loved the quiet sounds of the water running, the animals and insects moving around. It was so beautiful and serene. There was no peace now. The hunger was still there. It was a little voice in the back of her mind begging her to feed again. It was taking all of her willpower not to give in to that desire.

“Still avoiding the house, I see,” Elijah joked.

Azariah barely looked over to acknowledge him. “I can’t feel it anymore.”

“Feel what?”

“The earth. Ayana used to tell me about how all witches are connected to the earth and the spirits. They can feel nature living and moving around them. If I focused hard enough, I could feel the turn of the Earth’s surface. Now…” she leaned down and touched a lillypad, “there’s nothing. My magic is gone. I’m here. I’m standing, talking, breathing, but I feel like I’m dead.” Riah touched Elijah’s chest, right where Mikael’s sword had pierced him. There was no mark on any of them. Like it had never happened. “I am dead. We all are.” Elijah held her hand in place. Even just the touch of his skin against hers was heightened. It was like he was touching every nerve of her body. All she could think about was how good it felt. She turned away from him and brought her hand to her chest. “I don’t know if I can get used to this. Are we truly immortal? Now that the White Oak has been destroyed, can we never die?”

Elijah shook his head with a heavy sigh, walking to her side. “That, I do not know for certain. It would seem that Mother’s spell is absolute. We are… immortal.”

“I never asked for this. I don’t want it. But, since there’s no getting out of it now, I suppose that I shall try to embrace it.”

“There’s a good girl. Carry on with your head high.”

Azariah leaned her head against Elijah’s shoulder. They stood in a comfortable silence, watching the wildlife around them. She couldn’t feel it the same way that she used to, but she was more aware of Elijah next to her. Another thing lost and another thing gained. Balance in all things. Riah had learned to appreciate that when she had been a witch. Her magic was gone but she was standing with the one person she cared about more than anyone else in the world. It wasn’t such a bad thing surely if he was by her side. She knew that it should have been Finn that she was standing with. Finn was her husband. She was meant to turn to him in her times of distress, yet there she was with Elijah. She couldn’t keep denying herself that connection. Not when Elijah’s presence was so easily keeping her mind off of her hunger.

She looked up at Elijah. He looked down at her. Azariah kept thinking about how easy it would be to close the distance between them. Before she could act impulsively, a scream ripped through the air. The looks went from tender to concerned.

“Tatia.” Elijah said.

They both ran as quickly as they could to where they had heard the scream. Tatia was on the ground, blood slowly seeping out of a wound on her neck. Niklaus was standing there in shock. Blood covered his face. Some of it had gotten into his hair. Riah hated to admit it but all she wanted to do was crawl to Tatia’s body and drink the blood that remained. She took deep breaths and started to walk to Niklaus. He screamed in agony as his leg bent forward on it’s own. He begged for help from anyone. Riah started to move towards him. A hand on her shoulder stopped her. Mikael had arrived. He looked from Tatia to Niklaus. Breaking bones and amber eyes. A dead body, a fresh kill from Nik.

He was a werewolf.

Niklaus wasn’t Mikael’s son.

The realisation must have hit all four of them at the same time. Mikael stormed off towards the village, calling Nik a beast as he left. Nik kept looking from his hands to Tatia on the ground. 

“Go. Take him home. I… I will take care of Tatia.”

“Elijah-”

“Riah, go! Someone must be there to stop Mikael.”

Riah nodded. She put Niklaus’s arm around her shoulder and she helped him walk home. He was crying. He couldn’t believe that he had killed Tatia. She couldn’t believe that he was a werewolf. What did that make him now? A combination of the two? It was something that she was going to have to worry about later. She brought Nik to a bed and made him lay down. He stared at the ceiling in disbelief. Tatia was dead. There was nothing they could do now but mourn her. The spell had protected Esther’s family but Tatia hadn’t been there when it was performed. It didn’t protect the village from them. Esther burst into the house. She looked at Nik with widened eyes.

“You know what’s happening to him, yes?” Azariah said. Esther nodded her head. “Then you should know that Mikael does as well.”

“He’s not come home.”

“Then where…”

It didn’t take long for Azariah to put two and two together. Mikael had always been a proud and vengeful man. If emotions were magnified in her, then it was sure to be the same in Mikael. He would have gone to get revenge against not only Esther but whoever Niklaus’s true father was. There was no way that the clan would survive the night.

The next full moon, Mikael forced Esther to cast a curse on Nik as punishment for her actions. It would make his werewolf side dormant. It was a horrible thing to listen to. Niklaus did everything in his power to stop Mikael and he begged Elijah to help him. Elijah was too scared to act against Mikael. He didn’t know what would happen to him if he did and he didn’t know if that would make the situation better or worse. Riah tried to busy herself with anything else but she could still hear Nik’s screams as Esther cast her curse. When it was all finished, he begged for someone to take him down. Azariah couldn’t sit idly by and listen anymore.

She forced the chains down. Niklaus fell crying into her arms. Esther was still there. Mikael had long since left and Elijah was trying to process what he had just helped happen to his brother. Esther walked over to Riah and Niklaus. She looked down at her son and didn’t say a word. She walked away. Riah held tightly to Nik. He sobbed, knowing that both of his parents had abandoned him.

Elijah, Nik, and Azariah walked home together. Something had changed in Nik. Azariah could sense it. There was a rising fear in his heart. The closer they got to home, the more she could feel that something was broken in him. Something important. Riah handed Nik to Elijah. She wanted to confront Esther. Elijah stopped her. There was no use. It was done. They couldn’t change the curse now. They needed to be there for Niklaus. One thing was certain - they weren’t going to stay in that house one more minute. Azariah offered up the house she had stayed in with Finn before all of this. Elijah nodded and took Niklaus there. She cast another glance towards Esther. There would be no forgiveness for this.

****

* * *

****

“Mother is dead.”

Those were the words that Riah woke up to. Nik was standing there. He didn’t look stricken with sadness or guilt. His face was surprisingly… expressionless. Rebekah looked at Niklaus in disbelief.

“What do you mean, dead?!”

“Father killed her. I suppose he couldn’t take her betrayal.”

The six of them stood in silence, trying to come up with the words for what happened. Three weeks. It had taken three weeks for their family to completely fall apart. Azariah looked around the room. None of them knew what to do now. Riah spoke up.

“If Mikael would kill Esther, then he will come for us, next,” 

“You’re right. He all but promised to hunt me until my death.”

“Then we run,” Elijah said. “We run and we survive. We have no other choice.”

“No choice, hm?” Riah shook her head and scoffed. “Well then, we should leave soon.”

“We have to bury her.” Rebekah said. “We can’t just leave Mother to…”

“We will, sister. Don’t worry,” Elijah smiled reassuringly at her. “Finn, Azariah, try to secure us some horses. Kol, go to Henrik and Erik’s gravesite. We’ll all meet there. Niklaus and I will dig a grave for Mother.”

Azariah reached for Finn’s hand. She wasn’t sure what she was hoping to find, but whatever it was didn’t exist. They had to run. Finn didn’t say a word to her as they left the house. Not even as the six of them left the village, hoping to get as far away as possible before Mikael found them out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dead moms. Hybrid curses. We've got it all.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Introducing the boys. the girls. The theys. All of 'em.

Mystic Falls. As Riah’s car passed by the sign welcoming her to the town, she could feel her heart tighten. For nearly 900 years, she had avoided this place. There was a certain level of darkness that just… emanated from this place. Maybe it was all in her head but all the same she wanted to avoid it. Something had called her back now. She wasn’t entirely sure what it was. It could have just been nostalgia. Whatever it was, it had been enough for her to get a car and make her way there. The closer she got to town, the slower she started to drive. So many memories started popping up. Some of them were things that were best left buried in her subconscious.

Riah parked her car and looked around. She knew that it wasn’t going to be the same settlement it had been when she lived there, but she was still surprised by just how much it had changed. What had once been a small clearing in the woods was now a whole town. The trees had been cut back for miles to make way for the growing world. If she had been hoping to find something familiar, she should have just gone back to New York or Austin. She would have had more luck there. It didn’t matter. She was in Mystic Falls now and she was intrigued by all of the carnival preparations going on. She could at least stay for that. The sun had already started to set, hanging low in the sky.

However, she had been in a car for almost 18 hours. She needed a drink. She was thinking bourbon or maybe a nice whiskey. She got out and locked her car and started walking around. Some people looked at her with curiosity. They must not have gotten new faces too often around here. She didn’t think she was dressed strangely. She looked down. Nope. Faded t-shirt, black jacket, and jeans. Seemed pretty normal to her. 

Riah stopped in front of a restaurant. Mystic Grill. It seemed as good a place to get a drink as any. She stepped inside. It was dead, one or two patrons throughout the whole establishment. She assumed it was because people were preparing for the carnival or festival or whatever it was that was going on outside. The important part was that the bar was completely open. Just the way that she liked it. Riah slid into a stool and dropped her jacket over the back. It was a quaint little place for a small town. Not exactly a bar, but a bit too dingy to really be a family place. It had charm.

“What can I get you?” the bartender asked.

“Whiskey. Double. I’ve been driving for a long time.”

He nodded and brought her order to her. She thanked him. Before she could even take a sip, someone sat next to her. Azariah turned to look at whoever it was that couldn’t sit even one stool away. He was a tall guy with dark hair and light blue eyes. He wore a black leather jacket over a black shirt and black jeans. She didn’t even need to smell him to know that he was a vampire. He motioned for the bartender. Whoever he was, she didn’t feel particularly chatty. She downed her drink in one gulp and got up to walk away. The young vampire scoffed.

“You could at least say hello.”

“Or I could leave.”

“You’re new in town. Visiting from across the pond, then?”

“And why do you care so much?”

“Because you’re a vampire.”

“A vampire? Really? And what makes you so certain of that?”

“You don’t smell human that, much is certain.”

Riah smiled. “You’re rather arrogant, aren’t you? Considering you know nothing about me.”

“I know someone I don’t like is here and she doesn’t travel alone all the time. Not when she thinks having someone else is useful. Someone like a vampire.”

Riah sat back down. There were more than a few people that she knew like that, too. She was curious. If he was really keeping a close eye out for vampires, then that meant that he was nervous about something. She doubted that he was foolish enough to challenge an Original, so he probably had no idea who she was. That was even better. He wouldn’t be on vervain. Riah could use some information on who to avoid while she was here. The last thing she needed was to find out that Klaus had taken up shop back home. 

“Well then, why don’t you tell me all about this person.”

“Katherine Pierce.” He looked surprised with himself. 

Katherine Pierce. Now there was a name that she hadn’t heard in a long time. She knew that Katerina had changed her name after betraying Klaus. Riah had expected it to be something better than Katherine Pierce, but Katerina hadn’t always been the sharpest tool, no matter what she liked to tell herself. Last Azariah had heard, Katerina had perished in a church fire. Riah should have known better. That little bitch didn’t know when to stay dead. 

“And why did I just tell you that?”

“Because I compelled you.”

“How?”

“I’m an Original vampire, darling. It really isn’t that hard of a thing to do. What’s your name?”

“Damon Salvatore.”

“How many vampires are in town, Damon Salvatore?”

She got as much information as she could from him. Including himself and Katerina, there were three vampires that he knew of. His brother, Stefan, was the other one. There were no werewolves. In fact, he didn’t even believe that werewolves existed. Most of the younger vampires didn’t. Mikael had made sure that the race was nearly extinct. He had almost succeeded in killing them all, but he’d missed one or two in his massacre. It was because of him that werewolves hated the vampires at all. Finally, she asked about curses. He didn’t know about it. He didn’t know about the moonstone. Klaus wasn’t here. That was good news for Azariah.

‘Well, thank you, Damon, for your help. Now,” she rested her hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. “You’re going to forget that we had this conversation and you’re going to forget that you ever saw me. Until we meet again.”

She grabbed her jacket and left, setting some bills on the counter for her drink. Azariah walked around Mystic Falls until dark, reminiscing about what had been where before it was replaced and turned into a civilised place people could live in. The longer she was there, the more that she wanted to stay. Nostalgia was a powerful force. Before they had been turned into monsters, they had lived good lives. She loved her family, even now. Seeing this place… she wondered what they would think. 

The carnival lit up the town. People were walking around with smiles on their faces, so happy to have something to distract themselves from their normal day to day lives. Azariah had been to hundreds of carnivals just like this one. It came with the territory of being alive for a thousand years. She’d certainly never thought that she’d be at one of these in her hometown. She put her hands in her pockets and continued to walk around. Maybe she’d be able to find a nice meal while she was out and about. She could already smell blood. 

It was way more present than it should have been. Azariah was drawn to it, the way that all vampires were. She debated ignoring it. Ultimately, the hunger won out. She hadn’t eaten all day. She started to go towards the smell. Instead of a human that she could feed from, she found a blonde vampire feeding. Feeding too much. Azariah sighed. Newbies. They were always so obvious. So like herself. Riah pulled the vampire off of the guy’s neck. It was obvious to Azariah that he was already dead. She had gotten there too late. The vampire started to lunge back towards her victim.

“Woah, there, you might want to stop. He’s already dying,” Riah said.

“What?” Slowly, her eyes started to go back to normal. “I… I killed him?”

Azariah looked back. The guy she’d fed on had fallen to the ground. His heart stopped beating. “Yes. Because you’re a new vampire. Which intrigues me. Who turned you?”

“Who are you?!”

“You know, it’s rude to answer a question with a question. And I would like a real answer.”

“I… it was Katherine Pierce. She… why did she do this to me?” The girl started crying.

“Hey, hey, hey, it’s okay. Your emotions are all out of whack. Focus. What’s your name?”

“Caroline.”

“All right, Caroline. Everything’s going to be-”

Another vampire, the one from the bar showed up behind Caroline wielding a stake pointed at her heart. Azariah threw Caroline out of the way and grabbed Damon’s wrist. He did his best to overpower her but Riah was an Original. It was child’s play to push him away. She twirled the stake around between her fingers. 

“You know, it’s rude to interrupt a conversation with attempted murder, Damon.”

“Who the hell are you?”

Riah shrugged. “Someone with a soft spot for new vampires.”

“Damon!”

Riah turned to look at the new people who had barged in. Her heart stopped. The girl standing there… she looked just like Tatia. Just like Katherine Pierce. Azariah rushed over to her and looked into her eyes. She was human. That shouldn’t have been possible. Katerina was supposed to be the last of her line. Riah really shouldn’t have been surprised that Katerina had lied about that. She paced around her a little and put her hands in her pockets. This was going to make things so much more interesting. She assumed that the man standing next to her was Stefan, Damon’s younger brother. Even he had a familiar air about him, but she couldn’t quite place where she had seen his face before. Probably sometime in the 164 years.

“You should take your friend away from here. Large crowds are never good for newbies. Until next time, Salvatores.” Azariah gave a short wave and started to walk away.

“You gonna give us a name?” Stefan asked.

“Not yet. You haven’t earned a name.”

She knew now why she had come back to Mystic Falls. She’d returned to make sure that Klaus didn’t get what he wanted. If he knew that there was a living doppelganger, he’d drop in on this town in an instant. Even if Azariah had to kill the girl, she wouldn’t let Klaus break that curse. Mystic Falls. Of course the doppelganger would appear for the first time in over 500 years there. There was a certain kind of symmetry to it all. Now, she just had to find Katherine and figure out what it was that vindictive bitch was planning while she was here. It couldn’t be good, not if she was going around turning people and making noise. She was drawing attention to herself. Maybe she was hoping to offer Elena as a sacrificial lamb in return for her freedom. 

As much as Riah would have loved to give Niklaus a piece of her mind, she’d much rather watch him suffer for another 1000 years.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it continues.

It only took Azariah a couple of hours to learn about this new doppelganger. Her name was Elena Gilbert. Her parents had died in a car crash relatively recently. She had a little brother named Jeremy who was a bit of a wreck for a while but recently had been doing much, much better. She was a junior at the high school and her boyfriend was Stefan Salvatore. He’d shown up in town at the beginning of the year and enrolled. Damon followed suit. No one had seen the illusive twin, Katherine Pierce. That part didn’t surprise Azariah. Katherine was either compelling them or pretending to be Elena or both. She was still doing some things to cover her tracks when she could.

There were no other leads on the other parts of the curse. There wasn’t a werewolf anywhere around town that Azariah had been able to find and the moonstone had been lost for centuries. Riah was pretty sure that Katherine had taken it when she fled, just to doubly ensure that Klaus wouldn’t kill her. She had probably bargained it away at some point. Azariah couldn’t be entirely sure. She knew that she’d have to find that stone eventually and destroy it. She would give anything to see Klaus’s face as he realised that the last piece of hope he had to unlock his werewolf half was lost forever. She’d probably end up daggered in a box for longer than Finn had been at this point, but it would be so worth it to know he’d be suffering.

For now, she wanted a drink and it seemed that the only bar in Mystic Falls was the Mystic Grill. She didn’t have a problem going there again. She ordered another whiskey and again, before she could even take a sip, someone sat next to her. She looked over to her new “friend.”

“Stefan Salvatore, I take it,” she sighed. “Please, take a seat. Oh, you already have. Wonderful.”

“Random vampire that disappeared after being a knight in shining armour. Who are you?”

“A vampire. Obviously.”

“Cute.”

“My name is Azariah Ulricson. A pleasure, I’m sure.”

“Why are you here, Azariah Ulricson?”

Riah set her drink on the bar. She turned to face Stefan. He was doing his best to keep his face expressionless, but she could see it in his eyes. He was worried. Katherine being in town was a bad thing for everyone, especially for anyone close to Elena. She had seen that exact look in the eyes of her family through the years. She crossed her arms and cocked her head to the side.

“Because I’m allowed to go where I’d like. Free will and all that. And I want to know more about this town. The people in it. People like Elena Gilbert. You know, it’s strange. She looked _just like_ this other person I used to know.”

“Katherine.”

“Well, I wasn’t specifically thinking of Katherine, but she is one of them, yes. Katherine and I only met briefly a long, long time ago. I know you don’t trust me, and I don’t particularly care, but trust this - an enemy of Katherine Pierce is a friend of mine.”

She paid her tab. One day, she’d be able to get more than one drink in this bar without being interrupted. Stefan watched her as she left. She had given him just enough information to feed his curiosity for now. It was her turn to figure some things out.

**_1492_ **

Riah walked with her arm around Elijah’s. He had offered to escort her around the garden. She hadn’t left the castle since Katerina’s arrival. He claimed that it wasn’t good for her. She needed the exercise. He was always able to get her to do what he wanted with minimal persuasion. It was just the effect that he had on her. The gardens in their latest estate were gorgeous. Rebekah had made sure that they had the finest gardeners to take care of them. It was rather nice to take a walk through them every now and again. She had been holed up for too long. Elijah was right. More likely than not, it had just been the guilt of seeing Katerina and knowing that she would be dead soon that kept Azariah in her chambers.

As they turned a corner around one of the hedges, Katerina ran past them. Klaus was close behind her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her against his chest with a grin. Katerina was giggling. She really had no clue that he didn’t care for her at all. Niklaus had been certain to tell his family as much when they asked if he could kill her for the curse. She was a means to an end, that was all. Collateral damage, he said. Azariah couldn’t see it like that. Katerina looked too much like Tatia. That was the point of a doppelganger, of course, but it didn’t make it any easier to see her as simple prey. From the couple times that they had talked, Katerina seemed like a sweet girl a little too far away from home. She had no idea who was courting her.

Azariah hated how easily Klaus was able to manipulate this girl. She was just a child, really, not much older than Rebekah had been when she was turned. Even when it came to vampires, she was naive. Klaus wanted to keep her as close as possible and when he wasn’t with her, he was off terrorizing the local town. There was so much that had changed in Klaus over the years. He didn’t try to hide or fight the hunger. He revelled in the kill so much more than the rest of them. He didn’t even try to hide the blood on his shirt from Katerina when he had come home the night before.

“I wish he wouldn’t flaunt her so,” Riah sighed.

“I am not a fan of it either, Azariah, but it is what must be done,” Elijah said. “He’s our family. Perhaps by helping him break this curse, he will finally see just how much we all care for him.”

She shook her head. She could only hope that Elijah was right about this. She missed her friend. She and Klaus barely talked since he had decided that he wanted to keep her in a coffin for 60 years at the start of the century. He claimed that he didn’t even remember what they had been fighting about. Azariah resented him for it. He used those daggers as tools of manipulation against his own family. It was deplorable. 

Katerina and Klaus made their way over to Elijah and Azariah. Katerina curtseyed to them both. 

“Elijah, will you and your wife be joining us for dinner tonight?”

Klaus barked with laughter. Azariah’s cheeks flushed red. Even Elijah had the good sense to look away and release Riah’s arm from his own. Katerina looked around in confusion.

“Forgive my laughter, dear Katerina. Elijah is not married to our dear sweet Azariah. She’s married to our older brother, Finn, though he is indisposed at the moment. Elijah has been kind enough to keep her _company_ in her husband’s absence,” Klaus smirked.

Riah clenched her fists and bit her tongue. She wanted to rip his out. It was because of him that Finn was “indisposed” at all. Stuck in a box for over 300 years now. She took a deep breath and excused herself. She wanted to be gone before she did something that she’d probably regret later. Klaus had become callous and bitter over the years. He’d long since stopped being Nik, the sweet boy that would make small, wooden carvings for his family. He was truly a cold-blooded killer.

Azariah knew that she wasn’t exactly a saint, either. Being a vampire had changed her, too. She had killed. If she was being honest, she didn’t feel quite as much guilt as she had the first time. Now she knew it was for their survival. She would have done anything for her family and she had done horrible things in the name of keeping them all safe. She’d turned people, tortured them, killed them… and she’d do it again given the chance. But Klaus was vindictive. He was paranoid. He killed and tortured for the fun of it, not because he had to. He used the daggers against the rest of the family. Azariah considered herself, Elijah, and Rebekah lucky that they weren’t daggered. Yet. Klaus didn’t let anyone cross him without paying a price. 

Finn had gotten the worst of it. When Niklaus had first refused to undagger Finn, Azariah hadn’t minded. It was shortly after he had turned Sage. She could still feel that betrayal in her heart. They had been vampires for almost a century at that point. Finn had avoided Azariah for over half of that time and then she learned about Sage. Even though he was ignoring her, Azariah hadn’t broken their vows. She had tried to stay loyal and he threw it away. She was hurt. And when Klaus said that he wasn’t going to take the dagger from Finn’s chest, she was all for it. She wanted him to hurt. She wanted Sage to feel the same pain and betrayal that she had.

It didn’t help that she and Elijah had…

It didn’t matter anymore. Finn was still daggered. Sage had disappeared when she realised that none of them were going to bring Finn back. Even now, Riah did nothing to remove the dagger. She didn’t even try to convince Klaus to do it himself. She knew _why_ she wouldn’t bring it up. She also knew that what she was doing was wrong. Finn didn’t deserve to be stuck. She was scared that if she did bring him back, she’d end up in the box in Finn’s place. If she was going to be forced to make that choice, then she wanted her own freedom. She hated herself for that choice and she hated Klaus more for putting that fear in her in the first place.

Azariah kicked a table in frustration. For a moment she had forgotten her own strength. The table flipped over, sending everything on it to the floor. Servants were instantly there cleaning up after her. All of them had been compelled, vampire and human alike, to do the Original family’s bidding. She sighed in frustration.

“Is everything all right, my lady?” Trefor asked. He looked genuinely concerned. 

Azariah scoffed. “No, but it’s not anything that you, or any one person can take care of.” She started to walk away but stopped. “Trefor, you’ve travelled with us for a while now. What do you think of Klaus?” Trefor looked around nervously. She couldn’t blame him. She sighed again. “Nevermind. Forget the question. Enjoy the rest of your day. The sun will be going down soon.”

Katerina walked past them both. Trefor’s eyes followed her hungrily. It wasn’t bloodlust that Azariah saw there. Trefor knew what the curse called for. Somewhere along the line, he had fallen in love with the Petrova girl. It seemed that the doppelganger’s face had that effect on people. It was almost impossible not to feel something for her. Even Riah found herself wishing that the girl didn’t have to die for Klaus’s needs. If she couldn’t help Finn, then maybe she could find a way to help Katerina not die. Surely the witches knew of a way to bring someone back to life, other than vampire blood, of course. She’d ask Elijah for his help later. He was better acquainted with the witches than she was. Azariah didn’t like to be reminded of what she had lost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it will continue. Tomorrow. Probably.


	15. Chapter 15

“Riah Jones. I’m a local reporter hoping to do a piece on the importance of community,” she said with a smile.

Mayor Lockwood smiled back. “Well, you couldn’t have picked a better time. Today is our Historical Society Volunteer Picnic, hence all of the preparations.”

“If you don’t mind, I’d love to walk around and get a couple of quotes from the crowd.”

“Not at all.”

Azariah thanked the mayor for her help and started to walk around the pavilion. The Founding Families. Riah gave a dark chuckle. They had no idea how wrong they were. It didn’t really matter who had been there first in the end, but she still found it a little amusing that they still made such a big deal of the whole thing now. A volunteer picnic. At least it kept the community involved. Azariah looked around. She could see Elena and Stefan already there in a corner. Elena Gilbert. Surprisingly a member of the Founding Families. Of course she was there. Azariah knew that she would have to keep a close eye on that one to make sure that Klaus couldn’t get to her. She also couldn't let Katherine kill her, though she doubted that would happen. Katherine was smart. She’d been on the run for 500 years. It was lucky for Riah that Klaus’s energy had been focused on finding and torturing Katherine. It was a sort of smoke screen for her to use to her advantage.

Now here they were in the same place. If Katherine wasn’t more careful, she would bring the Mikaelsons down on them both. Word was getting out that she was in town. No doubt Katherine already knew that Azariah was there. Riah wondered if Katherine knew that she had nothing to do with that family anymore. It wasn’t too far off base to assume that was true. Katherine would have been keeping tabs on Klaus and Elijah, just to make sure that she didn’t accidentally run into any of them.

Riah caught a glimpse of Damon stalking around, too. She hated to admit it, but those Salvatore brothers were currently the best people to keep Elena safe. She needed people that she could trust, and the brothers were those people. The new vampire, Caroline, wouldn’t be nearly as useful. She still needed to learn control and restraint. From what Riah could gather, that wasn’t something she was particularly good at as a human. All of her tendencies would only be amplified now that she was dead. Not exactly a great candidate for bodyguard. Considering she was walking around in the daylight, she had to have a daylight ring. They had a witch. Probably a powerful one, too. Riah would do her best to avoid whoever that was.

She started to move towards one of the groups of people and accidentally bumped into someone. She started to apologise but tensed up when the smell hit her. Werewolf. She looked up at the man she had run into. Riah forced a smile.

“Sorry about that. I should be paying more attention to where I’m headed,” she said with a short laugh.

“Don’t worry about it,” the man replied. “I don’t think we’ve met before. My name is Mason Lockwood.”

“Lockwood? Related to the Mayor?”

“My sister-in-law.”

“I see. Riah Jones.”

“What brings you to Mystic Falls, Riah Jones?”

“An article on community. We love getting stories on how people work together. Folk legends, too. You know, some people believe that Mystic Falls is a hotbed for supernatural activity. Vampires, witches, all of those creatures. If you have any stories, I’d love to hear them.”

Mason looked at her with suspicion in his gaze. Azariah was more than happy to return it. Mikael’s decision to kill Klaus’s birth family and his werewolf clan had created a certain, special kind of hatred between werewolves and vampires. They could notice each other basically on sight once they got each other’s scent. Azariah had spent plenty of time with werewolves in her days. She’d been bitten once, a mistake she was sure not to repeat. 

“I know that vampires and werewolves don’t get along. Especially not the ones in this town,” Mason said.

“Oh, don’t you mind me, Mason Lockwood. I have no intention of getting in the middle of your Salvatore fight.”

“Then how about the vampire-werewolf fight?”

“Well, then, I’d offer you my arm on a full moon. Bite me, Mason. Trust me, I bite back. A lot harder.” Riah smiled at Mason. “But, like I said, I have no interest in a fight with you or the Salvatores.” She leaned in close to his ear. Mason froze when her breath hit his skin. “It wouldn’t be a fair fight, anyway.” She moved away, still smiling. She patted his shoulder. “Thank you, Mason, for the good conversation and lovely company.”

She walked away. Riah wasn’t interested in picking fights with werewolves. Where there was one, there were 10. They liked to travel in packs. Every wolf considered the others to be family. Their loyalty was built in. Unlike vampires, who genuinely enjoyed stabbing each other in the back when it suited their needs. Azariah had to admire the wolves for that tenacity. They had survived for a very, very long time in small numbers. Small enough numbers that they had drifted into legends. Azariah could relate to that in some aspects. She wondered just how many stories were circulating around about the Original family now. How many of them had she and Kol started as jokes?

Azariah shook her head. She needed to stop thinking about the past. If she started to think about the past, then she’d let old feelings about Klaus take over and she’d start to pity him again. It was the same trap she had fallen into when they had met the Five and it was the same trap she took 400 years to break free of. She wouldn’t fall into it again. She would be the one to make him suffer this time. She would take away any hope that he ever had of becoming the hybrid, even if she did have to end up killing Elena. That was a last resort, but if it came down to it, she knew for a fact that Elena was the last living member of the Petrova line. The last doppelganger. If Azariah killed her, more importantly, if she killed her in front of _Klaus_ , even if she was never conscious again, Riah would be secure in the knowledge that Klaus would always be stuck as just a vampire.

She stopped to talk more with the mayor. Azariah had a feeling that Mystic Falls knew about vampires. Well, some of Mystic Falls, anyway, and it made sense to start finding out who knew by cozying up to the mayor herself. Azariah had tried some simple compulsion on her and it hadn’t worked. Vervain. Riah couldn’t go around compelling everyone to find out who was and wasn’t on vervain. Besides, that wouldn’t necessarily tell her who knew about vampires. Vervain could just be in the water supply. She kept her cards close to her chest. As close as she could, anyway.

“Excuse me, Carol, do you mind if I steal your reporter for a moment? Being a Founding Family member, after all,” Damon smiled sweetly at the mayor.

She ate it up. “Of course not. Damon, this is Riah Jones. Riah, this is Damon.”

“A pleasure.”

Damon and Azariah shook hands. It was clear that Damon was trying to make a show of how strong he was. Azariah was stronger without even trying. Damon grimaced. The mayor left. Riah waited until she was out of earshot.

“Jones? That’s the best last name you could come up with? Really?”

“Why are you so certain that’s not my last name?” Azariah shook her head. “To what do I owe this little visit?”

“I heard you talking to Mason Lockwood and you knew he was a werewolf without even asking. How?”

“Scent. Obviously. Clearly, you’ve never met any, otherwise you would know that.”

“Fair enough. Enlighten me, then.”

“Fine. Just to try and keep the peace between us all and stop you from accidentally outing all vampires in this town. On the full moon, werewolves that have triggered their curse transform into beasts. One bite from a werewolf and a vampire will die. Silver just pisses them off, but judging from the glares Mason keeps sending this way, I’m going to guess that you already know that part.” Azariah started to walk away again. “Oh, and if you keep pushing Mason, you’ll die. He may not be the one that kills you, but you’ll die. And your brother. And his pretty little girlfriend, Elena, too. Werewolves are loyal like that. Best of luck, Damon.”

Damon was much better at keeping his emotions from his face than Stefan was. Riah gave a little wave and went to go pry for more information elsewhere. She listened to conversations across the pavilion. Mason and the sheriff, Damon and Stefan. It was all drama that she didn’t need to get involved in.

Not until vervain ended up in the lemonade and Damon drank it.

Azariah could see Sheriff Forbes watching him intently. She had a look of disbelief on her face. Damon had really convinced her that he was human and on her side. Maybe he had been on her side after a while. Riah hadn’t been in Mystic Falls long enough to find out the whole story behind that.

Damon and Stefan ran off into the woods and Mason was nowhere to be found. Azariah sighed. People were going to die. There wasn’t a doubt about it now. Werewolves and vampires would never stop killing each other. Mason would be the one dying this time, unfortunately. Without the full moon on his side, vampires were stronger.

Three gunshots rang out. 

Correction. Vampires were stronger unless guns were involved. The shots were too quiet for normal human ears, but she had no trouble hearing them. And neither did the young blonde vampire. Azariah sighed and walked over to her. Elena was with her, not that Riah was surprised.

“C’mon, then. If we’re going to save your idiotic friends, you’re going to need more than just a fresh vampire and a human look alike.” Azariah started walking towards the sound.

Caroline and Elena followed. It wasn’t like they had much choice. If they wanted to save their friends, Azariah was their best bet to do it. She didn’t really care all too much about the brothers themselves, but she knew that they would keep Elena safe until Riah didn’t need her to be anymore. Riah leads them to a clearing. There was the scent of blood and gunsmoke in the air. Azariah leaned down and touched a leaf.

“Well, they’ve been here, that much is certain.” She wiped the blood off her hands.

“And you shouldn’t be.”

“Ah, Mason Lockwood. I thought I smelled wet dog.”

“Does your mother know what you are, Caroline?” Mason asked. Caroline looked at the ground for a moment in guilt. “I’d be happy to tell her.”

“Two against one here, Mason. I’m going to give you one chance to walk away with your life. I won’t offer it again.”

“What do you care if the Salvatores live or die?”

“I admire werewolves and their blind loyalty to one another. I thought I might give it a shot with some vampires.” Azariah smiled sweetly. “Be smart, Mason. Live to see another painful full moon.”

Mason looked between Caroline and Azariah. He decided to be smart. Riah watched him walk away. She ran in front of him.

“Can’t have you alerting anyone else that we’re here. You understand, of course.”

She pushed his head into the trunk of a tree. He fell to the ground unconscious. Caroline and Elena followed Riah. She wasn’t surprised that Mason Lockwood knew of a deserted cellar that vampires could be tortured and killed in. From what she could tell, there were four humans down there, along with the slowly dying Salvatore brothers. They stopped at the entrance. Caroline didn’t take another step, even as she listened to her mother killing her friends. Elena looked at the two vampires in confusion.

“What’s going on? Why aren’t we going down there?” Elena asked.

“It’s my mom. She’s killing them.”

“Well, then, we’d better stop her.”

Caroline grabbed Azariah’s arm. “Wait! We can’t.”

“Oh?”

“My mom. She’ll find out about me.”

“Wonderful. Vampire hating mothers are the worst. I’ll just kill her then. You can stay here.”

Azariah didn’t wait for an okay from Caroline. She knew she wasn’t going to get it and the longer that they all stayed above ground, the more likely that Stefan and Damon were going to die. She had no time to be subtle about it. Azariah ran down. She stopped for a moment. It was a small circle of people. Riah could handle a few gun wielding idiots easily. Even if they had vervain in their system. She ran at one of the deputies to her left. She tore into his neck. To this day, there was nothing she loved more than the taste of blood, but she wasn’t there to feed. She was there to kill. The body fell to the ground. The other two started to shoot at her. A few of the bullets hit her arms. One even got close to her heart, not that it would kill her. She ripped their hearts out. She dropped the organs to the ground. They landed with a satisfying sound.

She grinned. “Hello, Sheriff Forbes. It seems you have a couple of friends of mine. I’d like them back.”

The sheriff shot her. “Over my dead body.”

“That can be arranged.”

Azariah started to rush at Sheriff Forbes. Caroline stepped in front of her. She had her own set of fangs out. Azariah held up her hands. She could kill Caroline before she could blink, but she needed them to trust her, at least a little bit. Riah started to pull out the bullets, starting with the one in her chest. They fell to the ground, leaving her blood there. 

“All right. Do with her what you will.” She looked down at Damon and Stefan. They were both groaning, but lucid. A good sign for them both. “Well, it seems I’ve saved your lives. I’d highly recommend not making it a habit. Farewell, all. I’d say either kill your dear sheriff or bleed her until the vervain is out of her system. Either way, you’ll want her to forget this happened. I’ll be… anywhere but here.”

She dropped the final bullet. She was going to have to find someone to feed on that wasn’t close to here. It was the only way to heal completely. She could feel a splinter in her heart. It hurt. It wouldn’t kill her, she knew that, but she didn’t want to dessicate over something so small. Maybe she would find a hiker.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The longest chapter posted so for. Over 4,000 words. I wonder what could be inside?

Riah decided that she needed a little bit more of a hands-on approach when it came to keeping the vampires in this town safe. Mason Lockwood wouldn’t take kindly to the fact that not only were the two (maybe three, considering Riah’s threats) vampires he hated the most were still very much alive. None of them had ever had to deal with a real werewolf before and most of the information they would find was probably fake. It was one of those things that supernatural creatures loved doing. Spreading misinformation was a favourite pastime of Azariah’s. She had done more than her fair share of it over the centuries and she’d be glad to do it again.

Luckily for Riah, the Salvatores lived in one of the biggest houses in the whole town. It was a boarding house at some point, but she highly doubted that it was functioning anymore. Not when the owners were vampires. She drove to their front door and walked up. It really was a nice house. She hadn’t been expecting for it to be so well maintained. She was impressed. It probably wasn’t Damon doing it. Riah debated knocking. She decided it would be more fun and dramatic if she just went in. If a living person didn’t own the house, it would be a piece of cake. If not, it would be an awkward experience. She took her chances.

The door was unlocked. Since vampires lived there, it made sense. Intruders wouldn’t last long. She could hear three voices from the living room. Or one of the living rooms. It didn’t matter. She walked towards them. Damon, Elena’s little brother, and a man she had yet to meet were all sitting around discussing the moonstone and curses.

“Considering I’m the one who found out about the moonstone,” Jeremy said.

“Well, well, teenagers are useful for something after all.” Azariah walked towards them. Damon stayed sitting. The other man reached for something, probably a stake and Jeremy looked scared. “Stand down, I don’t want to hurt any of you. I just saved _his_ life recently. Why would I do that just to end it now?”

“Riah, I presume.”

“You presume correctly. And you are…?”

“Alaric.”

“Good to meet you, Alaric.” She poured herself a glass of whatever booze was in Damon’s decanter. She sniffed before she took a sip. “Now, what do you three know about the moonstone?”

“Not much, just that it’s used to break the sun and the moon curse.”

_She sat with Nik and Elijah, carefully carving the words Nik had come up with. He was brilliant when it came to those things. He knew just how to make it sound like it was a real curse. The sun and the moon. They would use vampires and werewolves to find the moonstone for them. It was a genius plan, really. She had to give Niklaus credit where credit was due._

She hadn’t thought about that curse in a long time. They had no idea that it was a complete sham. She looked into her glass. She didn’t have the time or energy to explain everything wrong with that theory that they had. She would just go alone with it for now. As long as Klaus didn’t show up, she wouldn’t need to go into the details.

“Ah, yes. That little tidbit. Vampires could roam free and werewolves didn’t have to transform if they didn’t want to. The bad thing is sometimes supernatural beings piss off the wrong person and get themselves cursed for all eternity.” She wasn’t lying, exactly. Klaus _had_ inadvertently pissed off Mikael and gotten himself cursed to be stuck as a vampire for all eternity. 

“Not all vampires, though.” Damon showed off his ring proudly.

“No, not all of them. There are loopholes in things like that.” 

Riah twisted her own ring absentmindedly. She had once thought about asking a witch to make her a different one. All the Originals had the same daylight ring. It was a simple silver band with a sphere of lapis lazuli in the center she wore on her left hand. Her wedding ring from Finn was on the opposite hand. She had been wearing them for 1,000 years. They were the only reminder of where she had come from that she had kept. Everything else was long gone, stolen or lost or given away with time. She couldn’t bring herself to part with the ring. It wasn’t paranoia that a witch would screw her over. It was sentimentality. She didn’t want to forget the time she spent with Finn, either, not even after everything that had happened with Sage.

“According to legend, the werewolf part of the curse is sealed with the moonstone,” Alaric said.

“What does that mean, sealed?”

“Witches like to use items to seal their curses so they can’t just be broken. Usually, the seal is the key to unsealing the curse.”

“Maybe Mason Lockwood thinks he can use the moonstone to break the curse.”

She could have laughed at that. He wouldn’t be able to break any curses with that stone. But she needed to find it and get someone to de-spell it or destroy it. She’d go along with any story for that.

“What about you, miss unknown age vampire? Any truth to this crap?” Damon looked at her expectantly.

“The legends have been going around for years. Some of it could be fiction, some of it not.”

“This book says werewolf bites are fatal. Any truth to that?”

“Yes. It’s a nasty bit of business, too. I warned you not to piss off Mason Lockwood, but you couldn’t help yourself, could you?”

“He vervained me.”

“You stabbed him with a silver knife.”

“Touche.” Damon finished his drink. “Who has the moonstone now?”

“Tyler,” Jeremy said.

“Great! Can you get it?”

“Yeah.”

“Now your life has purpose.”

Damon set his glass down and walked past them all. Azariah raised an eyebrow. Surely it wouldn’t be that easy to get the moonstone. Riah had spent 300 years looking for it with her family. There were always complications. Alaric started packing up the papers and journals that he had brought. Damon said that they needed to talk to Stefan. Riah had no intentions of leaving Damon to his own devices with this. Neither did Jeremy, it seemed. The three of them piled into Damon’s car and drove to the Lockwood Mansion where people were preparing for some kind of masquerade ball. This town was filled to the brim with events and other such pleasantries. There was never a dull moment, was there?

Riah stood back while Damon talked to Elena. She looked around, keeping an eye out for Mason or Stefan. Maybe even Katherine would show her face. It would be better if Katherine didn’t know that Riah was there until later. Riah wanted Katherine to gather all the things she wanted before she bolted so that Riah could take them from her. 

Damon walked away from Elena, leaving Jeremy with his sister. Azariah followed Damon.

“Great, now I have another shadow,” Damon sighed in frustration.

“You have no idea how to handle werewolves. I do, and I don’t particularly care if you want my help or not. You’re getting it. I need you and your brother alive.”

“And why is that exactly?”

“To protect Elena and piss off Katherine Pierce. What other reason do you need?”

Damon weighed his options. “Fine. Let’s go.”

It didn’t take them long to find Stefan. He told them about Katherine and Mason. Riah groaned at the thought of it. There was no level that Katherine wouldn’t sink to in order to get what she wanted. A deplorable trait of a person who had been running for 500 years. Riah was pleased to learn that she was right. Katherine wanted the moonstone. She was planning on making a deal with Klaus. Of course, she wouldn’t dream of talking to him directly. She’d probably go through… Elijah. He was less likely to kill her on sight. Damon mentioned Jeremy and the conversation shifted to Stefan’s concern.

“Why would you involve Jeremy?!”

“He involved himself. He wants to play Indiana Jones.”

“It’s no ideal, Stefan, but he is the only one that can get close to Tyler Lockwood. If he’s a werewolf, you can’t compel him to give you what you want. Let the boy try. We won’t let him do anything _actually_ dangerous.”

Stefan obviously didn’t trust either of them, but it was too late for him to protest now. Jeremy was already talking to Tyler. They could all hear the conversation. Matt left and it was just Jeremy and Tyler. Jeremy did his best to be discrete, but it was obvious that there was a bigger reason that he wanted the moonstone. The only important thing that Riah got from their words was that Tyler had given the moonstone to Mason. Which meant it was one step closer to Katherine. Damon looked ready to punch or eat someone. Or both. Stefan was just frustrated.

“Well, good thing we have witchy visions to help us. We need to talk to Bonnie,” Damon said as he stood.

“She’s not going to help you, you know that, right?”

“But she just might help you.”

Azariah hadn’t heard very many things about Bonnie Bennet since she had arrived in town, other than the fact that she was a Bennet. A Bennet witch was a powerful ally to have. They were descended from Ayana. Azariah hadn’t thought about Ayana for a long time. It seemed like there was something drawing all of those components to this spot constantly: doppelgangers, witches, vampires, even werewolves, now. Maybe there was some truth to old witchy tales about symmetry and the like. It was certainly an intriguing thought.

Stefan had told Damon that Bonnie had a vision of Katherine and Mason together. Clearly, Damon hoped that Bonnie could get something more. It was possible, but Riah didn’t get her hopes up.

Bonnie was sitting with a couple of her friends, putting together some masks for the party. Stefan started to walk towards her but Damon got there first. He grabbed Bonnie’s arm, whispering something in her ear before dragging her waway. Stefan didn’t seem too shocked by that development. It was apparently commonplace. Bonnie didn’t look pleased to be pulled along by a vampire. As soon as they were away from prying eyes, she ripped her arm out of his grasp. Stefan looked a little sympathetic, but he knew that this was necessary. Mason Lockwood had something Katherine waned and they needed to know if she had it. Witches were the best way to get that information. For now, anyway.

“Okay. This is as far as I go,” Bonnie said. She crossed her arms and looked over the three of them. “What do you want?”

“A favour,” Damon said.

“Like that’s going to happen.”

“So predictable.” Damon looked over to Stefan expectantly, the smile dropped from his face. “That’s why I brought him.”

“And her?”

Riah smiled and held out her hand. “Azariah. Most people call me Riah. A little bit easier. I’m here for… let’s call it moral support.”

Bonnie shook her hand. Azariah knew that Bonnie knew that she was a vampire now. A part of her wondered what Bonnie had seen when they touched. She knew that most witches would get an overwhelming feeling of death, but sometimes they would see a vision and Bonnie had shown that she was one of those witches. Stefan’s phone buzzed.

“I know how you feel about helping us out, but since you’re the one that linked Mason to Katherine, we finally have the opportunity to get an upperhand on both of them, so just hear us out.”

“Pretty please.” Damon put on his sweetest smile. It looked more like a grimace or a snarl to Riah.

“I’m listening.”

Stefan’s phone started ringing. Riah caught a glimpse of Elena’s name. She had seen that the two of them were avoiding each other, yet still casting longing stares and glances. She knew that look all too well. She’d given enough of her own over the years. Stefan walked away to full Elena in, leaving Riah and Damon with Bonnie. Stefan looked to Damon before he answered the phone.

“Can you three play nice, please?” Stefan asked.

“I guess.”

Stefan stepped away. Azariah fought the urge to listen in on the conversation. She figured that it was something she didn’t need to know too much about. She wasn’t particularly interested in the teen drama part of all of this nonsense. She wasn’t sure why Stefan and Damon were so obsessed with it themselves. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. They both obviously loved Elena. The doppelgangers had that effect on men. She had seen it more than once. Riah crossed her arms. How long was it going to take Stefan to fill in Elena?

“All you have to do is touch Mason Lockwood again to see if he gave Katherine the moonstone,” Damon said.

“It doesn’t work like that. I don’t get to ask questions.”

“How inconvenient. Although, let's talk about that little witchy juju thing you do with me. You know, the fun one where my brain bursts into flames? What is that?”

Riah grimaced. She had had the same things done to her once or twice over the years when witches thought that she was getting a little too violent. It wasn’t fun.

“That's me giving you an aneurysm. Your blood vessels go pop, but you heal quickly; so, I do it over and over again.” Bonnie looked pleased with herself. It was like she was thinking about doing it again just for fun. Riah had no doubts that she would in a heartbeat.

“Is it vampire specific?” 

“It'd work on anyone with a supernatural healing ability.”

“Good. Good, good.”

“Damon, I'm not gonna help you hurt him.”

“Mason Lockwood's a werewolf, Katherine's evil. They're the bad guys. Really? You're gonna play morality police with me right now? Let me put it to you another way: they're a threat to Elena. So you, witch, are gonna get over yourself and help us.”

Ah, a good motivator. She looked over at Bonnie. She was intrigued. No, not intrigued. Motivated. Mason Lockwood was now officially in the threat column of the Elena Gilbert protection squad. It was a matter of time before Bonnie agreed to help them. Stefan came back and Bonnie said yes. Yes, she would help them take down Mason so they could question him. She was actually the one that came up with the plan to get him alone. Damon, Stefan, and Azariah would wait on the sidelines while Bonnie used some of her witchy magic to knock Mason out. The three vampires would load him into a truck and drive him to the Salvatore’s house.

Hopefully, they’d be able to get the information they needed.

****

* * *

****

“You’re going to want to lay down plastic or newspaper if you’re going to torture him,” Riah suggested.

Damon had chained Mason up to a chair after they got him into the house. The bag they’d found in his jeep had given them more than enough to keep Mason down. Considering he was a werewolf away from his pack, it made sense that he would be extra cautious.

“You know what, you’re probably right. Have you done this before?” Damon asked.

“It’s almost like I’ve been alive for a lot longer than you and stayed alive this long. Torture is not something I shy away from. Besides, that rug looks expensive. It would be a shame if you had to throw it away.”

“Can you two stop talking about torture, please, before I regret helping you?” Bonnie asked.

“Only because you asked so nicely.” Damon smiled again. “Judgy.”

Bonnie walked over to Mason. She put her hands on either side of his head. His eyes opened, completely white. She was going to find where the moonstone was. More importantly, if he had given it to Katherine. Azariah’s hope was that he was smart enough to keep it from her for at least a day. Anyone that had more than a single brain cell knew better than to trust Katherine Pierce. The people that knew she was alive had to know that she had a history of using people to get what she wanted. Azariah had seen her try to do the same thing to Elijah back when she was human. Just thinking of it made Riah want to rip Katherine’s tongue from her head. Riah started pacing to try and get rid of some of her energy.

Bonnie kept her eyes closed in concentration. She took a deep breath. “Somewhere small. dark. There's water.”

“Like a sewer?” Damon asked.

“No. Like a well? That can't be right. Yeah. It's a well.”

“Why would it be in a well?”

Bonnie lowered her hands and looked at Damon. Mason’s head fell back against his chest. He was still out cold, then. Riah could see the annoyance in Bonnie’s eyes. Bonnie didn’t like Damon and she didn’t know Riah. Not to mention Azariah was yet another vampire. Witches didn’t always enjoy getting stuck in vampire business. She had no reason to be doing this at all. 

“I told you, I only get what I get.”

Bonnie turned to walk away. Mason grunted. He reached out and grabbed Bonnie’s arm. Riah took his wrist and started crushing it. It didn’t take too much pressure for him to let go. Bonnie rubbed her arm. She looked at the two vampires.

“That's it. That's all I got.” Bonnie started to walk away.

“Thank you, Bonnie. For everything.” Riah said.

Bonnie nodded and left. It was just Azariah, Damon, and a tied up werewolf now. It seemed like as good a way to spend a Friday night as any. 

“Come on. Wake up, wolf boy.”

Damon punched Mason in the face. He just grunted again. Riah sighed. This was going to be harder than she wanted it to be. Why couldn’t torture just be simple like it was in the good old days? At one point, she could have just held a rat to a man’s face and threaten him with the plague and that would be enough for him to spill his guts. With Damon, she had a feeling it was going to be flashy. She could deal with flashy. 

She paced some more. Damon started heating an iron poker in the fireplace. After a while, Mason started to wake up. Riah looked at him curiously as he took in his new situation. He struggled to get out of the chair. It was kind of amusing to watch. Damon stood up with the red hot poker in his hand. Mason tried to get away harder. Riah held the back of the chair to keep him in place. They couldn’t have him hurting himself.

“Someone’s feisty,” Damon said with a smirk. He stuck the poker into Mason’s shoulder.

Mason started to scream. He did his best to keep it contained. It hurt, but he didn’t want them to know just how much. It was a noble effort, but Riah knew that he would break eventually. 

“Did you know that werewolves heal at about 1/5th the rate that vampires do,” Riah said. She leaned to Mason’s unhurt shoulder, hovering by his ear. “I should know. I did several experiments on some of your kind a few centuries ago when I was trying to figure out the best way to kill you.”

“Hm. Well, if he keeps healing, I just have to keep applying the pain.”

“Be my guest, Damon.”

Damon went to heat the poker again. “So, Katherine. How do you know her? What is she up to?”

“Fuck. You.” Mason said.

“Fair enough.” Damon stuck the poker in Mason’s stomach this time. He screamed again. It was louder now. Music to Riah’s ears. “I can do this all day.”

“There’s another thing you can try. It might work a little faster,” Azariah said.

“Care to share with the rest of the class?”

“Wolfsbane.”

Mason’s eyes widened. Azariah walked over to Mason’s bag, rooting through it a little. It didn’t take her too long to find the water bottle. Werewolves. They were all the same. She held it up for Damon to see before tossing it to him. She stepped back down onto the blanket Damon had put down. He opened the lid and took a sniff. He backed away. Wolfsbane had a bitter smell to it. It was enough to sting a vampire nose.

“Toxic to werewolves. Similar in the ways that vervain is to vampires. Let me see that poker.” Damon handed it to her. She took the water bottle back, too, before pouring some of it onto the iron. She held it up in front of Mason. “You know how this is going to feel. Answer his questions and you won’t have to feel it. For very long, anyway.” He kept his mouth shut. “Fine.”

She stuck the poker into his shoulder. He howled out in pain. She could imagine the agony he was feeling now.

“Why is Katherine in Mystic Falls?” Damon asked.

“She’s here with me. Why, jealous?” Mason growled. 

Damon chuckled. “You know, I just realised I didn’t offer you anything to drink. How rude of me.”

He started to pour the wolfsbane onto Mason’s face. Mason grunted and groaned in pain, his face burning but healing quickly. He coughed up some blood, too. As much as Damon hated Katherine, he still let her have a hold on him. How boring. It continued on like that for a while. It was basically a torture session/pissing contest between a werewolf and a vampire in love with the same bitch. Mason taunted Damon some more, Damon gave him more wolfsbane. They were running in circles. Until Mason mentioned the well. Riah’s interest was piqued again. She walked to the front of the chair.

“We know where the moonstone is. But why do you want it?”

“For Katherine! She’s going to break the curse for me.” Mason coughed again. “She loves me.”

Azariah couldn’t help but laugh. She took a few steps back. “Men. All of you are the same. She’s not in love with you, you moron. She’s using you. She’s not breaking any curse and she’s certainly not doing it for you.”

“I’m done talking to you.”

“Fine.” Azariah reached into his chest. It was easy to find his heart. “You want to die, don’t you? I’ve seen my fair share of werewolf transformations. The bones breaking. The screaming. There’s a reason it’s a curse. Believe me, I know all about being cursed. This is the one mercy I will show you.” She ripped his heart from his chest.

“No fair! I wanted to do that.”

She dropped Mason’s heart into his lap. “Too bad. You should clean this up before someone comes home and sees. I’m going to go wash up.”

Azariah went into one of the many bathrooms in the house. She looked at her hand, covered in Mason’s blood. All of this for a stone. She had seen Klaus slaughter entire villages over it. What was one more casualty on top of that? Riah washed the blood from her hands. She heard Stefan come home. He had the stone. Good. One more thing that she could keep from the person that wanted it most.

**_1492_ **

“Brother, I would like to introduce you to Katerina Petrova.”

Elijah held out his hand and brought her forth. Azariah was taken aback. She… she didn’t just look like Tatia, she was Tatia. There was no difference between them that Riah could see. Klaus was already smiling. He had his doppelganger. He had the moonstone. Werewolves were close by and he had plenty of vampires. Finally, everything was in place. He would finally be freed. Azariah looked at Elijah with hope in her eyes. She wanted Niklaus to be happy. This was how she could make it happen. She could help him break this curse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh. Wait. I wrote it. Shouldn't I already know what happens?
> 
> I think I'm hilarious


	17. Chapter 17

“She said to bring the moonstone to the masquerade tonight or she’d make it rain blood on the town,” 

Caroline’s voice was loud and clear to Azariah. She had heard about Damon’s little stunt on the phone after she’d killed Mason. Her reaction had been a little… heated. She may have fantasized about staking Damon once or twice. He had been reckless. She knew that he was reckless from the first moment that she had met him. She just hadn’t expected that he was an idiot, too. Because of his impulsiveness, Elena’s aunt had stabbed herself. There was no doubt that Katherine was going to want the moonstone now that she knew that they had it. She had already proved she was heartless many, many times over. She had the resolve and the will to do this. Azariah wanted to kill Katherine herself, but she knew that the first sign of an Original vampire would send Katherine running, never to be seen for another 500 years. 

Damon knew that they had to kill Katherine. Stefan knew that they had to kill Katherine. Azariah was more than willing to kill Katherine. What better time to do it than at the very party she was hoping to get the moonstone from? Azariah started to head downstairs.

“You’re not going to kill her, Damon,” Stefan said.

“Really?”

“Because I am.”

“Well, I am all for murdering Katherine Pierce, but she’s older than the two of you and if she even catches a whiff of my presence, she’ll bolt. You’re going to need a witch,” Azariah said. “Luckily, it seems like this whole town will kill itself to protect Elena Gilbert, including your Bonnie Bennet.”

“She’s not strong enough to kill Katherine.”

“True, but she does have a grimoire filled to the brim with spells from almost all of the witches in her family. I’m sure we can find something to help.”

“I’m starting to like you more and more,” 

That was how they started their plot to kill Katherine Pierce once and for all. Damon insisted that they call the local vampire hunter, Alaric Saltzman. She had met him once, briefly. It was a good idea to bring someone with at least a little bit of experience killing vampires, though he wouldn’t be doing any of the actual killing in this instance. He would just be supplying them with the weapons. It was a hell of a way to get ready for a party. Caroline called Bonnie to bring the grimoire. Riah wasn’t sure who had called Jeremy Gilbert, but he ended up at the house, too. It was a whole party.

Riah watched as Ric showed Stefan and Damon some sort of contraption powered by compressed air. It would shoot wooden stakes forward. Easy to hide. He had really had a lot of time to think about these weapons. She shuddered to think of what some people like Mikael would do if they had their hands on this type of weapon.

Bonnie found the tomb spell. Azariah went over to help her. She could still remember some of her magic teachings. Bonnie seemed reluctant to accept her help. Riah couldn’t exactly blame her for that.

“I was a witch long before I was a vampire, you know,” Azariah began.

“Really? You?”

“Yes, as strange as that may seem. I knew the witch who made this spell, actually. She was a good friend of mine. My teacher. You can just put it up for a short period of time if you tie it to a celestial body, such as the moon.”

“Then they’d have enough time to kill Katherine.”

“Exactly. If you have enough focus, you can bind it to anything, really, and bring it down whenever you want.”

“My grams died using this spell.”

“Because she was working on one meant to last a long, long time. This one is meant to be temporary. You’ll be fine, Bonnie. You’re stronger than you know.”

Azariah did her best to reassure Bonnie with her words. She wasn’t sure if it was enough. It was going to have to be, unfortunately. As much as Riah wanted to be there, she knew that she couldn’t go to that party without drawing suspicion. Bonnie was nervous, and rightfully so. This was Katherine Pierce. As much as Riah hated to admit it, Katherine was a survivor. She needed to be taken down. They all had their own reasons for wanting her dead. If Riah was certain that Katherine wasn’t on vervain, she’d just compel her to kill herself. That would be so much more fun and easier than this. 

Their plan was put together. Everyone had a role to play and they needed to play them well. Riah would stay at the house, waiting for them to return from their party. It was all that she could do. Bonnie would put up the spell, Damon and Stefan would lure Katherine to the room and they would kill her. It was an almost perfect plan. All plans were potentially good plans if executed properly. She would just have to trust that they could execute this one properly. She wished them luck as they headed out the door into the night.

So, she was alone in a house that wasn’t hers. She had no choice but to snoop around and see just what the Salvatores were keeping around here. She had nothing better to do until they came back with news of Katherine’s death. Riah hoped that they could manage to pull it off. If she had it her way, she’d be there and rip Katherine’s heart out herself. Katherine was a bit too smart for something so simple. Riah hated to admit it. 500 years of running away had made her smart and paranoid. A dangerous combination. She couldn’t risk Katherine bolting.

Riah ran her hand across the spines of some of the books. Some of them were ledgers. Some first edition copies of classics… it was a library to rival some of the best in the world. Well, if one person had 164 years to collect books, it should have been. Riah had been a bit of a collector herself when she had stayed in one place for a period of time, but she’d left all of it behind in favour of running herself. Books, in the end, stayed the same, whether they were originals or copies. She didn’t need paper and glue to remind her of the old days. She came from a time when books weren’t as readily available and people were well paid to tell stories. She used to love those times in the village. 

Azariah stopped her hand by a leatherbound journal. She pulled it off the shelf and flipped it open to a random page. 

“April 4th, 1924, I can’t remember the last month. I was at a speakeasy when it was busted by the police, but I don’t know how I got there. The only thing I can remember is some blonde and this necklace…” Riah read outloud.

She looked a little further down the page. It was a drawing of Rebekah’s necklace. She cocked her head to the side. Stefan had known Rebekah at some point, then. Now that she thought about it, Azariah had thought that the necklace Elena was wearing seemed familiar. She hadn’t really paid attention to it, but it made sense now. Stefan had met her family and had been compelled to forget. In the 1920s, Klaus had just fled from New Orleans. He must have ended up in Chicago. Azariah had gone back to Europe a few years prior herself. What had they gotten up to in those days? Had Elijah met Stefan, too, then? 

Azariah traced the drawing fondly. She allowed herself to think about what might have been if she’d stayed with them, but only for a moment. It did no good to keep all of those what-if questions running around her head. She had left for a reason. Even if she hadn’t left in 1492, she would have gone eventually.

Damon called Azariah an hour or so after they arrived at the masquerade. Katherine wasn’t dead, but she was in the tomb with the moonstone. There had been a bit of a snag with the plan, but they had worked it out. He was headed back to the house. Riah wanted to see Katherine trapped for herself. She was gone long before Damon would get back. She drove out to the old church. She looked around. So, that was where Katherine was supposed to have died a century and a half ago. Of course she hadn’t. Riah pried open the stone door and leaned against it. Katherine was there in an instant.

Her eyes widened when she saw Azariah standing there. It was a great feeling to see Katherine trapped, well and truly. Azariah wanted to revel in it for as long as she could.

“Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in,” Azariah said with a smirk. “It’s good to see you, _Katerina_.”

“Azariah. It’s been a while. You look good,” Katherine said.

“You look like shit. When Damon told me you were stuck down here, I had to see it for myself.”

“So, are you going to call Klaus here to kill me now?”

“Klaus? God, no. I have no interest in seeing Klaus here until I’m certain that he can never break his curse. I came here to thank you for the distraction the last 500 years. If it weren’t for you, I’d probably be in a box somewhere in California with the rest of the Originals. Klaus has been so focused on finding you, he’s forgotten all about me. I’ll let you hold onto that moonstone for now, too. I _could_ compel you to give it to me in a couple of days, but I’d much rather let it stay in a place where Klaus will be trapped if he tries to find it.” Riah pushed off of the door. “Try to enjoy yourself, Katherine. Unless _you’ve_ already called our hybrid friend here. In that case, try not to think of all the horrible things he has in store for you.”

“I could tell them all about you. I will.”

“And what makes you think that they’d believe you? What makes you think that I won’t compel you to forget before then? I don’t see any vervain in that tomb with you. Face it, Katerina. You have no cards to play here. Farewell.”

She closed the door with a small wave. She had waited for a moment like this for so long. She had her own reasons to despise Katherine as much as she did. Now, Katherine was stuck and Riah could focus on finding out where Klaus was. She had been keeping tabs for a long time but lost him after they fled New Orleans. She felt a little bit of guilt about that time and she had fled the country herself. It was then that she had lost the Mikaelson family. She knew their patterns, though, so she had no doubts that she’d be able to find out where he was quickly. If it wasn’t Klaus, it would be Elijah. If she could find one, she could find the other. 

Azariah headed back to the Salvatore estate. Damon was sitting alone, drinking. She poured a drink and sat across from him.

“Penny for your thoughts?” she joked.

“We got Katherine. But Elena’s not safe, is she?”

Riah sighed. “No, she’s not. She’s a doppelganger. A very important one. If even a rumour of her existence has gotten out of Mystic Falls, she is always going to be in danger.”

“Then I’ll protect her.”

“That’s what I’m counting on.”

They finished their drinks in silence. Damon excused himself and went upstairs. Azariah stared into the fire. She watched the flames reach up, looking to destroy whatever they touched. She knew that it didn’t have a choice. It was just the nature it had. Still, she found herself mesmerized by its presence. She was drawn to it. She looked away. Klaus was similar to the flames in that way. She didn’t know if he meant to keep destroying what he touched. Sometimes it seemed like he did, but she had seen remorse in his eyes more than once. That was why she had kept going back to trust him and help him. Eventually she had had to grow up and acknowledge that he wasn’t going to change. It was in his nature to destroy, too. She set her glass down and went upstairs to one of the bedrooms. She laid in the bed for hours before she was finally able to drift off into any semblance of sleep.

****

* * *

****

Azariah wasn’t sure why she was surprised when she was told that Elena was missing. She had all but told Damon herself that Elena’s life would always be in danger. SHe started going over everyone that she had seen in Mystic Falls in the last few days. Had any of them looked remotely familiar to her? Could it have been Klaus? Or Elijah? Had she been gone long enough that Elijah hated her? Would he have tried to find her or talk to her if he had seen her in Mystic Falls? If he really was here, Klaus wouldn’t be far behind and Elena would be dead soon.

No one knew who had Elena. Azariah had her hopes that it really wasn’t any of the Mikaelson clan. She didn’t think that Klaus would be so quiet about taking Elena. He’d probably compel the town into throwing him a parade for finally being able to break this curse, Mikael be damned. Hell, if Klaus was certain that MIkael didn’t have a way to kill him and wasn’t stuck in a tomb somewhere far away, he’d probably send his father an invite himself, just to show him that he was better now. Stronger. Unkillable. For the most part, anyway.

She headed to the high school. They needed to get Elena back from whoever took her as soon as possible. Whoever had her probably wanted to use her as a pawn just like Katherine had wanted to. Klaus had no shortage of people that wanted to get on his good side. She found Stefan and Damon talking outside. She joined them.

“So, boys, do you have a plan to get Elena back?” She asked.

“The only thing we can do is strike a deal with Katherine,” Stefan sighed. “It’s Elena.”

“It’s not a good idea, Stefan. You know what she’s going to ask for.”

“That’s not entirely true, either. You may not need to get Katherine out of the tomb at all. But you’d better find Bonnie, first.”

Stefan headed into the school to track her down. Damon was pacing outside. Elena really did have him wrapped around her finger, didn’t she? Riah had only had brief conversations with Elena, but she seemed like a genuinely caring and compassionate person. She probably didn’t even realise just how much of an effect she had on the brothers. Damon got a text from Stefan telling them to meet in Alaric’s classroom. 

Bonnie had done a locator spell using Jeremy’s blood. When Damon and Azariah got there, Stefan was trying to tell Jeremy that he couldn’t go with them. Bonnie was wiping her nose. Riah could smell the blood. She walked to the young witch and handed her a handkerchief. 

“It gets easier the more you practise. Don’t overdo it before you’re ready.” Riah whispered. 

Bonnie barely acknowledged her advice and handed the handkerchief back. Riah threw it away. Damon and Stefan were going to find Elena. Bonnie and Jeremy would go back to the house and wait and Riah would stay in Mystic Falls. She played it off as three’s a crowd. The truth was that she was scared that she would end up finding someone from her past there. She wasn’t ready to face it yet. It was too much. She could barely manage thinking about them now. If they were actually there with Elena, she didn’t know what she’d do.

****

* * *

****

Damon came back hours later, alone. Azariah poured him a glass of scotch. The sun had long since gone down.

“I take it Elena is with Stefan, then?”

“Safe and sound.” Damon took a drink.

“Run into any problems?”

“Not really. Just a decapitated vampire, a runner, and a newly dead guy. Killed by yours truly. Plus, we got more information on this curse.”

“You know about the sacrifice, then.”

“You knew?”

“You never asked.”

Damon walked over to her. “And if I asked now?”

“I’d tell you that you should keep an eye out and a stake in your hand.”

Stefan came home, stopping Riah from elaborating anymore. She set her drink down and let the brothers talk. She busied herself by pulling down one of the many books lined the shelves. She didn’t get very far in before she heard the door open and Damon’s car start. She didn’t know where he was headed for sure, but she had an idea that it was for Elena. She turned back to her book. A few chapters later, Stefan came in. He opened his mouth to say something, but Azariah stopped him. They weren’t alone. She set her book down. 

“Who’s there?” Stefan asked.

A woman appeared in front of the two of them. It took Azariah a moment to recognise her. She had cut her hair, but there was no doubt. It was Rose-Marie. When Rose saw Riah, she looked ready to flee again.

“Oh, relax, Rose-Marie, if I wanted you dead, you’d be dead. I’m much more interested in why you’re here,” Riah sighed.

“You two know each other?” Stefan asked.

“Yes. We met, oh, 500 years ago, give or take.”

“I’m here because of Lexi,” Rose said. “She told me that you’re one of the good ones, Stefan.”

“You knew Lexi?”

“Trevor was my best friend. For 500 years, I have lived with one person and he’s gone and I don’t want to run anymore because I don’t have anywhere else to turn to.”

“Well, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you.”

“I don’t need your help. But you may need mine. Elijah may be dead-”

“Elijah? Elijah knows that Elena is alive?” Riah turned her full attention to Rose.

“Yes, but Damon killed him. The rest of them will come for her. They’re doing it for him. For Klaus.”

And there it was. The name she had dreaded to hear for so long, uttered as if it didn’t matter at all. He was coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you smell that? It's the smell of expensive cologne, ripped out hears, and nice suits. And it's on it's way to Mystic Falls.


	18. Chapter 18

“Okay, you have to understand I only know what I've picked up over the years and I don't know what's true and what's not true. It's the problem with all this vampire crap but Klaus, I know he's real,” Rose began.

Azariah sat down and prepared herself for quite the story. The Original Vampires were secretive for many reasons, not the least of which being Mikael chasing them wherever they went. Klaus also loved the idea of being a legend. Riah had to admit that the idea had appealed to her when she was younger. Some of the misinformation floating around her family were things she had come up with herself. She was interested to see just how far it had gotten from the real story. She reached into her pocket. The hagstone from Elijah was still there. It was much smoother than it had been when he gave it to her. She used it whenever she was worried or nervous. Now was no different.

“Who is he?” Elena asked.

“He's one of the originals, he's a legend,” Damon said.

“From the first generation of vampires.” Stefan elaborated.

“Like Elijah?”

“No.” Rose leaned forward. “Elijah was the Easter bunny compared to Klaus. He's a foot soldier. Klaus is the real deal.”

Well, that was just plain wrong. Elijah did have more morals than the rest of the family, he could be just as sadistic as any of the rest of them. More so, if he thought that someone was a threat to his family. To call him a foot soldier was an insult. Riah clenched her fist around the hagstone, careful not to break it in her grip. She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. Thinking about Elijah, still under Klaus’s thumb after all these years… it hurt. She knew that Elijah wanted to believe that Niklaus could be changed. He wanted to believe that his little brother was still somewhere underneath his paranoia and narcissism. Riah had lost that hope sometime between Finn being daggered for the foreseeable future and Klaus sticking one in her chest for saying she didn’t want to run away.

“Klaus is known to be the oldest.”

Azariah couldn’t help herself. She laughed at the idea of Klaus being the oldest. He loved to hold that over Rebekah and Kol, but Riah, Finn, and Elijah were all older than he was. Before the daggers existed, they could lord it over him for some fun. It had been a long time since Riah had felt safe enough to do that.

“Something funny?” Damon asked.

“Sorry, sorry. The idea of Klaus being the oldest vampire is… entertaining, to say the least.”

“If he’s not the oldest, then who is?” Rose asked.

“Well, it’s a bit more complex than that. You see, there were six Original vampires in total, all turned by a witch over 1,000 years ago.” She put the hagstone back in place and stood. She walked around them. “Some say it was to protect themselves. Others say they wanted power. Money. Love. All those typical things. There are three vampires older than Klaus, though one is only by a couple of months. And yes, while they do feel a certain level of loyalty to each other, not all of them _work_ for Klaus.”

“And how do you know all of this?”

Riah hesitated. She knew that as soon as she told them, they wouldn’t trust her as far as they could throw her. Still, she had gone this far. If she told them, they were more likely to be able to stop Klaus. That was why she was telling them any of this now, anyway.

“An easy answer, my dear Rose-Marie. I am an Original.”

As soon as she was finished speaking, just what she thought would happen did. Stefan and Damon were immediately by Elena’s side and Rose looked ready to flee. She sat back down.

“Relax. I haven’t seen Klaus since… for a long time. If I wanted Elena for a ritual sacrifice, what would have stopped me from taking her by now? Certainly not any of you. I’ve been running from Klaus, too. If you’re smart, then you’ll start running, too.” 

“It doesn’t matter anyway. Elijah’s dead, so no one else knows that she exists.” Damon sounded relieved.

“About that. Elijah’s not dead.”

“What do you mean, ‘not dead’? I staked him myself.”

“Well, Elijah’s not a foot soldier, as Rose so delicately put it. He’s _also_ an Original vampire. So, no, he’s not dead. Angry? Yes. Vengeful? Almost certainly.”

“Any chance he won’t tell Klaus Elena’s alive?”

“Not even slightly.”

Elena stood up, slinging her back over her shoulder. 

“Where are you going?” Stefan asked.

“School. I'm late.”

“Let me grab my stuff, I'll go with you.”

“It's okay, I know where it is.” Elena left without another word.

“She's in denial.” Damon said to Rose.

“Shut up, Damon.”

Stefan walked out the door. Riah didn’t think that it was worth it for all of this drama. They should have been keeping Elena somewhere that Elijah wouldn’t think to look. If they had said their names when they went to go get Elena back from Rose and Trevor, he would find them. He’d kill them, probably either by ripping out their hearts or maybe a little bit of torture, and then he’d take Elena right to Klaus. Riah wondered if he still had that elixir they’d commissioned from the witches to save Katerina’s life. If he did, he’d probably offer it to Elena. He wouldn’t be able to tell Klaus about it again. Riah could remember how well that had gone over the first time they tried to bring it up to him.

Klaus had no interest in saving the doppelganger’s life. He never did. As far as he was concerned, they were just Tatia look-alikes. They were reminders of what he considered his greatest regret. Or, that was how he had put it before they had found Katerina. Killing Tatia had been one of many things that he saw as the downfall of his life. A part of Klaus really resented that Mikael wasn’t his father. He hated Esther for it. A part of him probably even hated the rest of them for it, too. Elijah did his best to show Klaus over the years that he didn’t care. None of it seemed to matter. Nothing any of them did made him any better. He was paranoid. He was narcissistic. He was certifiable. 

Riah shook her head. She wasn’t going to allow herself to fall into that trap again. She wasn’t going to let herself start to feel pity for Klaus anymore. She had let it rule her life for 500 years. As much as she hated to admit it, 500 years later he was still controlling her. She was running away from him because she was scared of what he would do when he found her. She didn’t want to be daggered again. 

“Yo, Original, we’re going to Richmond. You coming?” Damond asked.

“I’ve got nothing better to do, might as well.”

Riah grabbed a jacket and she walked towards the garage with Damon. Rose was already in the car waiting for them. It was a long drive and none of them wanted to talk to each other. Damon didn’t trust Rose or Riah for various reasons. Riah sat quietly in the back. She hoped that Stefan was keeping a close eye on Elena. Elijah would be coming for her with more fervor than before. Now that he knew she was alive, it wouldn’t take him too long to figure out that she was in Mystic Falls. Hopefully this little detour to Richmond wouldn’t take too long. Maybe, if they were very, very lucky, Elijah was still recovering from his recent desiccation.

Rose drove them to an underground parking lot. There were cars with blacked out windows filling the garage. It was a popular meeting place for vampires, then. Riah had never really had a desire to go to places like this. It seemed like a good way to get found out by Klaus. She still appreciated them, though. They really had come up with a myriad of ways to adapt over the years. For the most part, the production of daylight rings was still a secret. Vampires needed places they could go in the daytime without rings and without the fear of burning up. Damon looked around the garage. He didn’t seem particularly impressed. It was more like he was a little annoyed with this trip.

“Back entrance,” he said. “How convenient.”

“That’s the point. We can’t all have little daylight rings,” Rose responded, waving her fingers at Damon.

“How do you know this Slater guy is even here?”

“I called him. He’s here. He’s always here.”

“Good.” Damon started to walk away with Rose in front of him. He grabbed her arm and pushed her against the wall using his full speed and strength. Riah sighed. “Just one thing: if you’re setting me up in any way, I will rip your heart out and shove it down your throat. It’s something I’m very good at.”

It was easy for Rose to reverse their positions and slam Damon against the car. “I’m older than you and stronger. Don’t get on my bad side.”

Azariah grabbed them both by the scruffs of their necks. With ease, she had them both on the ground. She pressed the heel of her boot against Damon’s throat, leaning down with her arm on her knee to get closer to him. “Every second you waste with this fighting is another second Elijah has to either find Elena or tell Klaus that she exists. You may hate it and we don’t trust each other in the slightest, but we have no choice. We have to work together. Got it?” She moved and held her hand out to Damon. He pushed it away.

That was the best that she could expect from him. Rose at least seemed a little more aware of the time crunch they were under. She lef them upstairs to a coffee shop. It was very modern, considering it was mostly vampires that worked and stayed there. The windows were double paned and tempered, Rose explained. It allowed plenty of sunlight to bathe through into the whole place without the vamps having to be afraid that they would burn up. It was the closest thing that most of them would ever get to being in the sun again.

“You see the appeal now?” she asked.

A scrawny guy with an uneven stubble walked to them with a smile. “That and the free wifi.”

Rose and the man embraced. That would make him Slater, then. He looked basically how Azariah had been picturing him. While Rose and Slater caught up, Riah walked to one of the windows. It was strange to think that something as fragile as glass would stop the sun from burning a lot of vampires alive. They had complete faith in their system. Any human that happened to come strolling in would never suspect that this place would be a vampire haven. Riah headed back to the group after he brought up Trevor. Rose wasn’t particularly keen on reliving it. Slater knew all about Damon. Date of death

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I know you.” Slater said. His smile had shifted to be more nervous than comfortable.

“Riah. Rose and I are… old acquaintances.”

“Right. Acquaintances.”

Slater brought them to a table where they could sit and talk. He offered his condolences about Trevor. Apparently, they had been friends. Funny how people could still make friends while on the run. Damon couldn’t understand why Slater would want to stay in college since 1974. It made him get a little defensive. Rose brought the subject back to what was important.

“If someone wanted to get in touch with Klaus, how would they go about doing it?” she asked.

“Craigslist.” Slater nodded.

Riah raised an eyebrow. That didn’t really make any sense.

“Seriously. I respond to a personal ad to get sent to somebody who knows somebody who knows Elijah, though I doubt he’s taking any messages at the moment. That’s where my connection ends.”

The hair on the back of Azariah’s neck stood up. Her back was facing the window. She could feel someone watching from outside. She didn’t dare turn around and look. It wasn’t a good feeling and she highly doubted that whoever it was had good intentions. She instead focused on listening to what was going on out there. It was all distorted through the glass. She wasn’t getting any clear sounds. She could pick up on passing conversations and someone playing guitar on the street, but there was nothing that seemed particularly out of the ordinary. She knew, or at least she hoped, that she wasn’t just being paranoid. There was someone out there.

Damon, Slater, and Rose kept talking, mostly about werewolves. Riah had to force herself to focus back on the people in front of her. It was the only thing keeping her from looking back. Slater was giddy when he heard that werewolves still existed. No doubt he wanted to get his hands on a live specimen. He seemed like the kind of person that would absolutely adore going to Mystic Falls. He’d end up getting himself killed, but at least he’d have a good time first.

“Can we stop the curse from being broken at all?” Damon asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, what if we make the moonstone useless? Would it stop the curse from being broken?”

“Well, yeah, probably, but why would you want to do that?”

“Tell me how.”

“You think I’m going to help you do something to piss off an Original?” Slater scoffed. “And keep me from walking in the sun?”

“You wanna walk in the sun? I can make that happen _if_ you help us.”

Azariah got that feeling again. Before she could even think about turning around, the window behind her exploded. She could feel shards of glass lodge themselves in her neck and start to heal just as quickly. The air was filled with the sound of vampires screaming and the smell of burning flesh as they were exposed to the sun, unprotected by magic. Riah stood and turned around. She stopped immediately.

He was there.

It was Elijah standing across the street. Their eyes met. Riah’s heart begged her to go to him, but she wouldn’t move. For the first time in 500 years, she was really seeing him. It wasn’t a dream or a vision or a memory, he was there. If she wanted, she could have run to him. The screams of burning vampires faded away and it was just the two of them. She wanted nothing more than to be with him again, consequences of her absence be damned. If she had heard him speak, she might have gone. But he left before she could do anything. Damon was by her side with Rose under his arm, protecting her from the sun. The three of them rushed back to the car.

Rose was sobbing with Damon’s jacket around her shoulders. They debated the idea of Slater orchestrating this. Azariah shook her head.

“It was Elijah. I saw him. I thought he’d be looking for Elena… unless he really _is_ looking for revenge first, but that isn’t like him…” Riah’s voice trailed off and she started pacing. “We need to get back to Mystic Falls as soon as possible. He’s sent his message. Now we need to plan our move.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so he's not in Mystic Falls yet. But he's back in the story and that's what matters.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My cat did not want to get off my keyboard this morning. So my cat apparently doesn't ship these two. Anyway, have chapter 19!

**_1492_ **

_My dearest Elijah,_

_If this letter is in your possession, then it means that I am already far away from England and you have returned without Katerina. I must apologise for my deception. You must know that it was not my intention to keep you in the dark as I have. I admit that this… plan of mine, if you could call it that, is not something I have been thinking about for a long time. I simply know that I can no longer watch Klaus descend into the monster he is. If I longed to be in Mikael’s company, I would find him myself and hand him a dagger. That is why I am leaving. I cannot allow myself to live in fear, not when my life cannot end. I refuse to be a puppet for him to bring out whenever he sees fit._

_Oh, I so wish that I could convince you to leave with me, Elijah. I know that you still see good in Niklaus where I believe there is none. For your continued optimism in your brother, I am envious. I, too, long for the boy I grew up with. I do not think that he exists any longer. This… creature that we are left with is far too paranoid to ever truly be family to me. If you were to come with me, I am certain that I could live a happy life. Without you, I shall continue to try. I leave you this pendant as a reminder that I was real and to remind you to have courage and strength, always._

_Please, do not look for me. Send Rebekah my love, and if Kol or Finn shall be awake again, tell them the same._

_Yours, Always and Forever_

_Riah_

She finished the letter. She didn’t have enough time to make another draft. This one would just have to do. Riah put the letter into an envelope as carefully as she could with the pendant before pouring red wax to seal it, using her personal crest to do so. She found a servant roaming around.

“Give this to Lord Elijah and no one else. If Lord Klaus shall stick him in one of those infernal boxes, ensure that it is in his coat pocket. If for even an instant, it seems that Klaus may be close to reading it, destroy the letter. Understood?”

The servant nodded, taking the letter and leaving. Compulsion was certainly a handy trick. Azariah lifted up her skirts and ran to her rooms one last time. She donned a disguise to make her look more masculine, trousers and all, before she went into the crypt. It was a place that Klaus used to keep their family. Unbeknownst to Elijah and Rebekah, it was also where he kept one of the silver daggers. Azariah carefully wrapped it and a jar of ash in cloth and kept it in one of her pockets. She could use it on Rebekah or even Elijah if they tried to bring her back. She looked at Finn and Kol, sound asleep under those lids. She apologised for leaving. Azariah stole a horse and forced it to run as far as possible. Klaus would be distracted by Katerina’s disappearance. His rage would be her shield as she ran. It would have to be enough. She sent one last look to the castle they had taken residence in. She would not see them again.

_**2010** _

Azariah woke up to her phone buzzing incessantly. She groaned, pulling a pillow over her head. It didn’t stop. She answered it.

“What?” she said.

“You were right. Elijah’s not dead. I just saw him.” 

It was Damon. Azariah sat up straight in bed, suddenly completely awake and interested in the phone call.

“What do you mean you saw him? Why aren’t you dead?”

Damon explained the whole situation. Elena had asked to see Slater. As soon as Rose realised that Elena wanted to be some kind of a martyr, she had called Damon for help. Shortly after he got there, while they were trying to get Alice to leave them alone and Elena to follow them home, three vampires showed up. He’d killed one and Rose ran away. Elijah killed the other two and just left. 

“If you want an explanation, I don’t have one. He’s always done whatever he could to make Klaus happy since… well, since I’ve known him.”

“How isn’t he dead?”

“I told you. He’s an Original vampire. What might kill a normal vampire like you or Rose only pisses us off. Like I said in Richmond, he’s the one that blew up the coffee shop, too. Glad to see you were paying attention, Damon.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. We’re headed back to Mystic Falls now. Any chance you could keep an eye out for our new friend?”

“Since you asked so nicely, fine. I’ll see if I can find out what Elijah is planning.” She neglected to mention it was only because she wanted to know herself. “For now, you need to find a way to keep Elena safe from herself. If we’re lucky, Elijah _really_ hasn’t told Klaus that the doppelganger lives. We can’t let her tell him herself.”

“Yeah. No shit, Sherlock.”

“How’s Stefan?” Riah asked.

They had been trying to find a way to get the moonstone from Katherine in the tomb and Stefan had ended up stuck in there with her to save Jeremy’s life. What was it with the Gilberts and putting themselves in harm's way? It just ended up creating more problems for everyone around them.

“Surviving.”

“And the Lockwood kid? It’s his first transformation tonight, isn’t it?”

“Blondie’s on it already.”

“Try not to piss him off, got it? The last thing you need is an angry wolf coming after you.”

Riah hung up the phone and pulled her knees to her chest. Elijah, making sure that no one who knew about Elena was alive? What was that about? He should have been rushing to bring her to Klaus himself. Something had changed while she was away. It didn’t make any sense. She had no idea how she was supposed to find out what Elijah was planning. She had no idea where he had gone after killing those vampires in Richmond. If she had to narrow down a list of possibilities, then he was probably somewhere in Mystic Falls or somewhere close, keeping an eye on Elena. Once he knew what he wanted, there was nothing that could stop him. The question was what _was_ it that he wanted in the first place? If he wasn’t bringing her to Klaus, then why was he so interested in Elena?

Azariah could spend hours thinking about that or she could get up and try to do something about it. For now, Elena would be under watch by someone. She would be as safe as possible, all things considered. Hopefully someone took her phone away, too. She’d find some way to advertise what she was and where she was. Riah wouldn’t put something like that past Elena. She couldn’t blame her for wanting to protect her family, either. Klaus was… sadistic. Riah hadn’t gone to Bulgaria to see what he had done to Katerina’s family, but she had heard rumours of the massacre. She had seen what he did to the Five after they were daggered for the first time. He wasn’t one to show mercy for any actions against him. It was just who he had become.

She was going to need coffee if she was going to think about all of that blood.

It was strange to think that back then, she had been too hurt to really care that Klaus had effectively destroyed an entire order of people. Granted, they were vampire hunters, but the way he had spoken to Rebekah after… he practically accused her of sticking a dagger in her own chest. That should have been enough for Riah to leave. But she stayed anyway. She stayed and she even helped him for the 50 or so years he was haunted by the hunter’s curse. She still believed in her family in those days. 

Riah went to a coffee shop in town, preferring the overpriced brew to whatever it was that Damon liked to call coffee at the house. She had been drinking it for the past couple of days and she was tired of it. She wasn’t entirely sure that she could trust the Mystic Falls brew, but it couldn’t be worse, that much was certain. She drove into town. It never ceased to amaze her just how little humans noticed the world around them. Most of the people in Mystic Falls would never know about the things that went bump in the night. When they told their children that magic wasn’t real and there were no monsters under the bed, they would really believe it themselves, too. Even with the things happening now with the curse, it wouldn’t seem any stranger to them than any other day. If Elena was successful on her suicide mission, the people would call it a tragedy and offer condolences for the Gilbert family. They wouldn’t question why she had died. 

Riah paid for her coffee and started walking around town. She didn’t have anything else to do until she could track down Elijah. She started to take a sip and nearly choked when she saw him walking down the street. He was with Elena’s aunt, Jenna. Riah’s eyes met his again. Jenna and Elijah kept walking towards her. Fuck. She couldn’t just walk away now, it was obvious that she had seen them, too. She was just going to have to stop and talk to them as if she had seen Elijah in a normal, human span of time instead of 5 centuries. She could manage that. She’d been alive for a thousand years, dammit, she could handle a minute of conversation.

It didn’t stop her heart from feeling like it was going to fly out of her chest. Suddenly, those cartoons of it happening didn’t seem quite so unrealistic. Riah put on a smile and walked to meet the pair.

“Elijah. Hi.” She said.

Smooth. What a great way to start a dialogue after effectively avoiding any and all forms of interaction with him and his insane, psychotic brother for 500 years. It was all that she could manage to get out. That was probably for the best. Knowing her luck, she could have burst out with far too much information in front of someone that had no idea vampires existed in the first place.

“Azariah. It’s been a long time,” Elijah smiled softly. 

He pulled her into a hug. For a moment, Riah hesitated before hugging him back. If Jenna hadn’t been there, she would have buried her face in his neck, just taking in his scent after all of this time. That was the thing about being a vampire. It made everything more heightened, including smell. Underneath an expensive cologne, she could still catch a whiff of _him_. She had almost forgotten it. 

“Follow my lead,” Elijah whispered. It was so quiet there was no chance that any human ears could have heard it. She nodded slightly. “Jenna, I’d like you to meet Riah. She used to be an assistant of mine. I wouldn’t have finished half of my books without her.”

“Yes. Of course, I had to leave for bigger and better things. I don’t believe we’ve met yet.”

Jenna held out her hand. “Right. I’ve seen you with Damon Salvatore, haven’t I?”

“He _is_ a member of the Founding Families. A pretentious, rockheaded member, but one of them nonetheless. I was hoping he’d give me more insight into the community than he did.”

“A shame.” Elijah chuckled. “Well, Jenna was going to help me with some of my research. Apparently, her sister was quite the historian. Would you like to join us? If that’s okay with you, of course, Jenna.”

“The more the merrier,” Jenna smiled. 

“Fantastic. Azariah can ride with me and we’ll follow you to your house, then?”

It was fairly obvious that she didn’t want to be there at all and had somehow been roped into it. Riah and Elijah followed Jenna to her house. To Elena’s house. In the time that Riah had been in Mystic Falls, she had never been here before. She also had never been in a car with Elijah before. They were sitting less than a foot away from each other but they didn’t say anything. He didn’t even look over in her direction. Elijah had, for the most part, always been this way. When he was focused on something, it was the only thing he paid attention to. Whatever he was planning with Jenna would have to be finished before he would talk to Riah candidly. He parked his car across the street from the house. They walked together to the front door with Jenna. Both vampires stopped at the door as soon as Jenna entered. She looked back at them like they were insane.

“You guys can come in. These boxes are pretty heavy.”

“Thank you, Jenna,” Elijah said.

They crossed the threshold. Riah looked around. So mundane for someone so important. If vampires had never come to Mystic Falls, Elena would have no idea just how much she meant to some people in this world. The doppelganger. How often had her blood been used to create spells and curses for witches? Riah made her way into the kitchen. Jenna went to the closet under the stairs. Elijah stood a small way back to let her search for the right boxes. The stairs creaked as someone headed downstairs.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Elena’s voice came from around the corner. Elijah visibly perked up. Had he known that she would be here or was it a happy coincidence?

“Perfect timing.” Jenna said. The door was still obscuring their view of Elena, but Riah saw Jenna hand a box over.

“What is this stuff?”

“Your mom's files from the Historical Society. I got roped into helping Mrs. Lockwood and by roped, I mean very excited to participate.”

Jenna closed the closet door. Elijah and Riah both looked up to see Elena. Riah could hear her breath catch in her throat. Her heart practically skipped a beat, it was moving so fast. Azariah crossed her arms and leaned against the arch into the kitchen.

“We’ve met,” Riah said.

“And we have yet to. Hey, I'm Elijah.”

“Elijah's in town doing research on Mystic Falls,” Jenna explained. “And Azariah is an old research assistant.”

Elijah walked closer to Elena, holding out his hand. She took it nervously. “It’s a pleasure,” he said.

“So you're welcome to stay here and rummage through this stuff or Elena and I could help you load it into your car.”

“Or I can get someone to pick it up tomorrow.”

“Also a good plan.”

“Thank you so much for inviting us into your home, Jenna; and Elena…” Elijah looked down at Elena with a smile. “I hope to see you again sometime soon.” Elijah and Azariah started to leave. He stopped her quickly. “Wait here.”

Riah did as he asked. Well, for the most part. She went and stood by his car. She could see him through the window with Elena. They were talking about a deal to keep her friends safe if she agreed to be bait. Klaus and Elijah had had a falling out. Klaus didn’t trust his brother anymore. Riah straightened up when he said that. What had happened between the two of them?

“And then what?” Elena asked.

Her voice was distorted, but Riah could still hear what they were saying. Elijah didn’t hesitate with his response.

“Then I kill him.”

Azariah had never expected that she would hear Elijah say that about Klaus. She had thought about killing the hybrid for years, but she never in a million years would have thought that Elijah would want his brother dead. He constantly talked about the importance, the burden, of family. Something had obviously knocked Klaus down from that family group in Elijah’s mind. Azariah spent so much time in her head that she didn’t hear the rest of the conversation. She saw the two of them shake hands. She blinked and Elijah was by her side.

“You waited.” He said.

“You asked me to,” Riah responded. “What are you planning, Elijah? You want to kill Klaus? Since when?”

“I will explain, Riah, I promise. But, first, I have a matter to attend to. Will you come with me?”

“Of course I will.”

Elijah spent the first half of the drive explaining to someone, one of his witches, probably, what he needed to be done. The tomb spell needed to be lowered so Elena’s friend, Stefan Salvatore, could leave. Elijah wanted to be there to not only inform Stefan of his freedom but also to see Katerina and ensure that she didn’t get the same thing. He hadn’t seen her since the last time that Azariah had. He wasn’t any more of a fan of her than Riah was now. He wanted to see her trapped, too.

They went to the old church ruins. Riah showed him the way to the tomb. Elijah opened the door with little effort, standing with his hands in his pockets. Azariah crossed her arms again. Slowly, Stefan and Katherine appeared. Katherine looked about ready to flee back into the recesses of the tomb when she saw that Riah _and_ Elijah were there. She looked between the two of them in fear.

“Elijah,” Kathrine said.

“Good evening, Katerina. Thank you for having the good sense to be scared.” Elijah turned his attention to Stefan. “Your release has been requested.”

“What? By who?” Stefan asked.

“The lovely Elena drives a hard bargain. However, we reached a peaceful agreement, she and I. Please.” Elijah stepped aside and gestured for Stefan to leave. “Come.”

“I can't.”

“Yes, you can. I've had the spell lifted.”

Stefan slowly walked out. He looked at the door of the tomb as he left. But he was free. The spell was gone. Katherine tried to rush past the three of them herself. Azariah was easily able to catch her by the wrist. She took great pleasure in practically throwing Katerina back into the tomb. Elijah moved back in front of the door. He looked into her eyes, compelling her.

“As for you however, you should not exit until I say so. When Klaus comes, he'll want to know exactly where you are.” He turned to Stefan once more. “You're free to go. Elena will explain the arrangement to you. If she keeps her word, I'll keep mine. Shall we, Azariah?”

They left the tomb and walked back to Elijah’s car. Riah stopped. She couldn’t go any longer without any answers. She looked at Elijah. He had changed so much in the last 500 years yet was still exactly the same. Naturally, his hair was shorter to match the times, but he still dressed nicely. The suit was tailored to fit him well. The biggest change was in his eyes. Azariah always remembered that he was worried, of course, but there was usually a smile hidden in his eyes, especially in the moments when he could enjoy the family being around him. Now, it was a silent rage. If Azariah knew that she could be killed, she’d be scared.

“Why are you here, Elijah? Why are you making deals with doppelgangers to kill Klaus?” She asked.

“Perhaps we should go for a walk.”

It wasn’t so much a request as it was a command. Azariah sighed but followed anyway. Elijah explained that they had run from New Orleans in 1919. Rebekah and Klaus had been split off from him. He didn’t find them for nearly a decade later. Klaus had already made the decision to dagger Rebekah, though he hadn’t told Elijah why. The final thing that broke Elijah was when he wanted to find Azariah and bring her home. She had to admit that that surprised her. She looked at the ground. Elijah turned to face her.

“Why _did_ you leave, Riah?” He changed the subject abruptly. 

“I left you a letter.” She said.

“I know.” He pulled it from his pocket. The paper had yellowed and torn over the years, but it was still there. Her careful handwriting spelled his name on the front of the envelope. He put his hand under her chin, making her look into his dark eyes. “But I want to hear you say it.”

Riah looked down, away, anywhere that wasn’t directly at him. Eventually, she had to meet his gaze again. “I left because I was scared of Klaus. I didn’t want to live life by his rules, or anyone’s but my own.”

Elijah sighed and lowered his arm back to his side. “And our family wasn’t enough for you to stay.”

“No! It was the opposite, Elijah.” Riah struggled to explain it. “I… I watched Mikael abuse and manipulate you all for years. He did the same thing to me and Erik for a long time. I couldn’t do anything about it. And I couldn’t do anything about it when I saw Klaus doing the same thing. The idea of having to watch that for the rest of my life broke my heart more than I could bear.” She looked at the ground once again, tears in her eyes. Elijah wiped them away, his hand lingering on her cheek. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She took a step back. “You still haven’t told me why you want to kill Klaus.”

“I told Niklaus that finding you was… paramount. There was nothing more important to me. After losing our home in New Orleans, I knew that I needed you in my life, Riah. I spent 10 years alone, and I had time to think while I was alone. A few days after I told him I would leave to find you on my own, he threw our family into the seas. Their bodies are lost to me forever,” Elijah said. “We’re the only ones left.”

Azariah couldn’t believe it. It couldn’t be true. Had Klaus truly lost himself so much that he would do something like that? From Elijah’s expression, it seemed that he had looked everywhere for the coffins. Having found no evidence of them, it would make sense that he and Klaus hated each other now. Klaus had really made sure that his family, Elijah’s family, was gone as revenge for something as foolish as this. She couldn’t stop herself from punching a tree to her right. The bark exploded off in splinters. Her hand was bleeding profusely but healing just as quickly as it had been hurt. Elijah took her hand, kissing her knuckles. A little of her blood was on his lips.

“We will get revenge for them, Riah. I swear it. Klaus will pay for what he’s done.”

Elijah pulled something else from his pocket. It was the small bear pendant. She had almost forgotten that she’d given it to him. The nights when she longed to feel close to her brother, even after all of this time, she felt its absence more than anything else. But Elijah had kept it safe. He’d kept it for 500 years. He went to hand it back to her. She shook her head.

“I gave it to you for a reason, Elijah. Keep it. Please.”

“Thank you.”

“Thank _you_ , for not giving up on me.”

They hugged again. He rested his chin on top of her head. It was a comfortable embrace. She felt safe in his arms. She knew that as long as Elijah was with her, she’d be safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mm. Sweet, sweet reunions.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, they're together. They're in the same town. It's happening.

Azariah left the Salvatore house that same night. She hadn’t brought a lot of things with her so it wasn’t difficult to do. She saw no reason to stay with them if she had someone she actually liked on her side now. She heard Damon and Rose talking about something but she didn’t pay too much attention to it. She was more interested in getting out of that house and trying to get Elijah to tell her more about his plan to finally kill Klaus once and for all. The daggers didn’t affect him and she highly doubted that he had a white oak stake unless he found and got Mikael to give it to him, something that would never happen. Even though she couldn’t be compelled and he knew that she wanted nothing more than to help him, he was silent about it. Luka and Jonas weren’t any more helpful. They didn’t trust her because they didn’t know her. She couldn't blame them.

It was strange to be so close to Elijah after so long on her own. She wasn’t used to him being just a phone call away. She definitely wasn’t used to seeing him in the seat across from her absorbed in a book. He wasn’t telling her anything and the book was an unmarked grimoire. She couldn’t even get context clues. She hated not knowing. She didn’t necessarily deserve to know what he was planning, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask again.

“You could find whatever it is you’re looking for a little faster if you clued me into whatever it is you’re, well, looking for,” Riah said, leaning forward in her chair.

“Yes, but I’m still not going to tell you,” Elijah said. “This is a delicate plan. I can’t risk any snags.” He set the grimoire aside. “I haven’t seen you for 500 years. I’m… adjusting.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Fine. Keep your secrets. I’ll find out one way or another.”

“I’m sure you will.”

Riah sat back again. She looked up at the ceiling while Elijah turned back to the grimoire. She hated to admit that it was much more interesting at the Salvatore house. She was slowly losing her mind here and she’d only been there for a day and a half. She didn’t know what to do with herself if she was just supposed to sit in a chair. She was used to being active. Most of the time, the plans that involved someone’s death were her own. She was completely out of the loop. Of course she understood _why_ she was out of the loop. It wasn’t like Elijah would just forget that she had been gone for 500 years. Still. She started shaking her leg. It was mostly involuntary. Elijah looked over to her and sighed.

“Will you settle down if I invite you to the Historical Society’s High Tea?” He asked.

“The Historical Society what now?” She turned her head to the side.

“Apparently, they’re so pleased that someone is writing a book on this town that they want me to join them for tea. You’re more than welcome to join me. In fact,” he set the grimoire down and smiled, “I would love nothing more than for you to join me. It will give us another chance to talk and catch up.”

“All right, I’ll go.”

“You’ll need to change, of course. I won’t bring you if you’re wearing a t-shirt and blue jeans.”

“I’ll have you know that this t-shirt is a vintage Rolling Stones tour shirt. I’ve had it for 30 years and kept it in near perfect condition.”

“Cute. Look nice. Please.”

“If anyone else said that to me, I’d snap their neck.”

“I am well aware.”

Riah tossed a pillow at Elijah. He was able to catch it easily. She grinned. It felt nice to be a little light-hearted with him. It was just for a moment and she knew that it wouldn’t last, but she didn’t care. Elijah set the pillow down, shaking his head.

“We have about an hour if we’re going to make it on time. I trust you can find something suitable by then?”

“You underestimate me, Elijah. Yes, I can manage that.”

“Thank you.”

Riah ruffled Elijah’s hair as she walked by, ignoring his protests. It was a small piece of revenge for his lack of faith in her wardrobe. She _had_ been a noble for most of his life. Sometimes, she liked to be more comfortable than fashionable. She had worn far too many tight shoes and poorly made corsets to go for anything less. She didn’t dress up if she was going to be sitting around a stranger’s living room searching through books and grimoires for something she didn’t know a lot about. A high tea with the mayor was a different story. She hadn’t brought a lot of things with her when she came to Mystic Falls, preferring the idea of travelling light and leaving most of her things in an apartment far away from here, yet she was still able to find something quickly. A red shirt, black blazer and matching slack, topped off with a pair of dark wedges. A little bit of eyeliner and she was ready. Her hair was short enough that it just sort of fell into place. She was presentable, even by Elijah’s standards. Riah walked back into the living room, holding her arms out for Elijah’s careful inspection.

He took a moment before saying anything. There was a hint of a smile on his lips. He hadn’t said it in so many words, but Riah could feel that he had missed her just as much as she’d missed him.

“You look… beautiful, Azariah,” he said finally.

“Good enough to be your date?” she asked.

The implications of what she had said were obvious. If Elijah picked up on what she had suggested, he wasn’t giving it away. He knew how to keep things to himself when he wanted to. That skill had been known to drive Riah mad in the past, so she had no doubts that’s what he was doing now.

“Even better.” He held out an arm for her. “Shall we?”

Elijah escorted her to his car again. For a second, it felt as if she had never left. The pit that had been in her stomach was finally gone. She wasn’t quite whole, but she didn’t feel broken anymore. After aimlessly running for so long, she had a purpose. It was a dark one, admittedly, and it was meant to end in the death of someone she had once called a brother, but it was a purpose nonetheless. She looked at Elijah over in the driver’s seat. She wished that she could ease his mind and take away his anger. She knew that it would remain until Klaus was dead. Riah reached over, taking his hand in her own. His breath hitched for a moment at the contact. He intertwined his fingers with hers without ever taking his eyes off of the road.

They arrived at the Lockwood Estate sooner than Azariah would have liked. She didn’t want to let go of Elijah’s hand. She could still remember the first time he had touched her after they became vampires. That feeling was still there. They sat for a while, just the two of them in the car without worrying about what was happening around them. Riah, despite it being the last thing that she wanted to do, let go of Elijah and got out of the car. She surveyed the mansion, taking in the amount of people there. Were all of them members of the council Damon had talked about? It was something they’d have to find out before long.

Elijah and Riah walked to the door together. He knocked. Carol answered a few seconds later. She looked surprised and a little bit disappointed to see Riah standing there, too. Her smile faltered only for a fraction of a second. It was barely even noticeable.

“Elijah! Come in, please, both of you!” She said. Her voice was a little too cheerful.

They entered the house. Carol took it upon herself to introduce Elijah. The tea was for him, after all. There were whispers from the women as they took him in. Riah wrapped her arm around his, keeping him close. She hated to admit it, but she was marking her territory. Not that it was really hers to begin with. Still, she had been there first. She wasn’t going to let some bored housewives get feisty in their imaginations without knowing what they were going up against.

“Jealous?” Elijah muttered under his breath. The corner of his mouth was twitching.

“You wish. I’m just here to keep you on track,” she whispered back. “Let’s get some tea, since that is the reason we’re here.”

Elijah kept a straight face, but he refused to let Riah leave his side for an instant. They were offered tea. Azariah took a sip. It wasn’t the best tea in the world, but it wasn’t necessarily bad. Riah would always think that the best tea was in a little shop outside of Manchester. She had gone there in the 50s. It was still brand new back then and she’d heard that it was still open now. She’d always planned on going back there, but other things got in the way and she ended up stateside. 

Carol made her rounds before finding her way to the pair. She stopped in front of them, that far too wide smile still on her face. “So, have you considered spending any time in Richmond for your book? There's such a wealth of history there.”

“No, I'm focusing mostly on the smaller regions of Virginia. Lots of research. Strictly academic,” Elijah responded.

“That's fascinating.”

Carol rested her hand on Elijah’s arm. Was she this shameless of a flirt when her husband was alive? Or was it a resurgence of who she was before she was married to a werewolf? Riah took another sip of her tea. She listened to Carol continue to make small talk, all of it centered around Elijah. How long was he going to be in town? If he wanted, she’d be _more_ than happy to take him on a private tour of Mystic Falls. Just when Azariah was certain that she was going to rip off the mayor’s head in front of all of those people, Damon walked up. Carol stood to greet him. The smile seemed more genuine but no less flirtatious. They kissed each other’s cheeks. Elijah and Riah stood in turn.

“Elijah, I want you to meet Damon Salvatore. His family is one of Mystic Falls' founding families,” Carol said. “And this is his... friend, Azariah.”

“Mm-hm.” Damon looked at Elijah. “Such a pleasure to meet you.”

“No. Pleasure's mine.”

They shook hands. Riah was surprised when it didn’t turn into some kind of contest to see who was stronger. Obviously, Elijah would have won, but it would have been hard to explain why all the bones in Damon’s hand were crushed. Carol saw someone new walk into the party and excused herself. Damon looked a little murderous.

“Well, boys, perhaps we should move somewhere more private if you’re going to try and kill each other, yes?” Riah said.

She started walking towards the study without bothering to check that they were following her. She held open the door for them. As soon as all three of them were inside, she closed the door and leaned against the frame. Damon walked to the desk immediately. Elijah stayed near Riah with his arms crossed and a small, tight lipped smile.

“What can we do for you, Damon?” Elijah asked.

“I was hoping we could have a word.” He responded.

“Where's Elena?”

“Safe with Stefan. They're laying low, you know, bit of a werewolf problem.”

“Oh, yeah, I heard about that.” Elijah moved to one of the couches, running his hands across the leather.

“I'm sure you did since it was your witch that saved the day.”

“You are welcome.”

Damon sat down on the desk. He stared at Elijah. Elijah stared straight back. Damon had to know that he was completely outmatched. Two Originals against one vampire that hadn’t even hit the 200 year mark yet. It was sad. Elijah looked vaguely amused by the whole situation. 

“Which adds to my confusion on exactly why you're here,” Damon said.

“Why don't you just stay focused on keeping Elena safe and leave the rest to Azariah and me.”

Elijah held out his hand. Azariah went to exit the room. Damon was in front of her in an instant, blocking her way out. Not exactly a smart move on his part. He had a fire in his icy blue eyes. He was used to getting what he wanted because he was a vampire. He was stronger and faster than humans. Elijah’s amused expression dropped instantly. Azariah sidestepped out of his way, letting Damon get a better look at Elijah. Mostly it was to let Elijah have a clear shot at Damon.

“Not good enough.” Damon spoke with the confidence of a man who didn’t realise he was going to die soon.

Elijah reached out quickly, grabbing Damon by the throat. He pushed him against a wall on the opposite side of the room. Damon finally looked scared. He went to try and pull the same move on Elijah. It did nothing. Elijah was completely unaffected. Damon watched in confusion as Elijah grabbed his hand, pulling it off his neck. The sound of cracking and crushing bones filled the air. Damon groaned in pain. Azariah walked closer, running a finger along the wood of the desk. Elijah’s eyes narrowed.

“You young vampires, so arrogant.” Elijah dropped Damon’s hand, keeping him against the wall, choking him. “How dare you come in here and challenge me?”

“You can't kill me, man. It's not part of the deal,” Damon choked out.

“Who said anything about killing you?” Azariah grabbed a pencil from the desk and stabbed Damon in the neck between Elijah’s fingers. Blood seeped out from the wound. Damon yelled in pain, reaching for the wound. “You see, Elijah promised Elena that you would be protected. I have made no such deal. Luckily for you, Damon Salvatore, our interests are aligned. And that makes you useful. For now.”

“I liked you better before he came to town,” Damon choked out.

“Careful now, Azariah, before you make me break my word.” Elijah said coldly.

“I would never dream of it,” she promised.

Elijah let go of Damon. He fell against the desk and ripped the pencil from his neck. Elijah pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, wiping the blood from his hand. He took Riah’s and did the same. She thanked him.

“We’re Originals. Show a little respect.” He held out the handkerchief to Damon. He grabbed it hastily, placing it over his still bleeding wound. “The moment you cease to be of use, you’re dead, so you should do what I say.” Elijah looked down at Damon, still hunched over the desk, and smiled. “Keep Elena safe.”

Elijah and Azariah left the room. She gave a little wave before she closed the door. Elijah was, understandably, angry. He had always hated it when younger vampires thought that they could best an Original, especially when they _knew_ that he was an Original. If it hadn’t been for the deal with Elena to keep Damon alive, his heart would be on the floor already. They didn’t stay too much longer at the tea, deciding it would be best to leave before Damon tried something else that they couldn’t ignore so easily. It really seemed like he was testing them to see just how far he’d have to push before one or both of them tried to kill him.

****

* * *

****

“You have to tell me what you’re planning, Elijah. Please. I can help you if I know what you’re looking for,” Riah said, taking a sip of her coffee.

Elijah’s jaw tightened and he stopped walking for a moment. “I will. Soon.” He turned to face her, grabbing her hand gently and pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “There are things at play here that I have yet to discover. I need your trust in me.”

“You will always have it, Elijah. You know that. But I need your trust in _me_. I can’t help you if I don’t know what you’re-”

He held a finger to his lips. Elijah looked away from her, his eyes following something across the street. Riah followed his line of sight. Jules, the werewolf that had come into town after Mason died, was walking quickly to a car. Riah could count three, maybe four other people. Probably all wolves, too. The car tore off in the direction of the Salvatore house.

“Now, what business could five werewolves possibly have with Damon Salvatore, hm?” Elijah asked.

“Well, he _did_ torture one of their own and threaten to kill them more than once. So, I’d say they want to get to him first.”

“Incredibly foolish to do so without the full moon. Come. I have a feeling we’re going to have to save his life. Again.”

They walked to his car quickly. Elijah didn’t hesitate to walk straight into Damon’s house. Riah was really just trailing behind him with her hands in her pockets. The smell of blood and wet dog permeated the air. Elijah went to the living room. Jules was standing with a shotgun pointed at Damon’s chest. Damon was strapped to a chair in a very similar fashion to Mason. He had probably told them exactly what he did. He really was the most arrogant vampire she had ever met. He was sitting in a chair with a collar made of wooden spikes digging into his neck, yet he still had that smirk on his face.

“Where’s the moonstone?” Jules asked.

“Get over it, honey. You're never gonna get it.” Damon spat.

Elijah walked forward, entering the room finally. “You looking for this?” He leaned against the bannister, twirling the moonstone in his hand. All eyes turned to them. Azariah stepped out from behind him with her arms crossed. He walked down the stairs and set the milky white stone on an end table and backed away with his hands in the air. “Go ahead. Take it.”

One of the werewolves used his wolf speed to rush to the moonstone. Elijah was faster. He plunged his hand into the wolf’s chest. The man looked up in shock as Elijah ripped out his heart with ease. He dropped it to the ground and the wolf fell onto the couch. Dead. Two more rushed at them. Riah caught one of them by the neck, squeezing until blood was falling between her fingers. She dropped him to the floor. Elijah ripped out the heart of the other werewolf. Riah watched it fall to the floor with a soft, wet thud. Someone rushed away from them. Riah barely noticed. Elijah walked over to the last person. He was crouched with his jacket over his face, like he thought that would be enough to keep him safe. Elijah pulled him to his feet.

“What about you, sweetheart, hmm? You want to take a shot? Yes? No? Yes?” Elijah turned his attention to Damon. “Where's the girl?

Damon looked around. “I don't know.”

“It doesn't really matter.” Elijah snapped the werewolf’s neck.

Riah watched him fall to the floor, her head turned to the side for a moment. She looked at Damon, still trapped in his chair by chains. “You know, I do believe that between Elijah and I, this is the _fifth_ time your life has been saved by an Original. You really should stop making this a habit.”

Azariah grabbed the moonstone and walked out with Elijah close behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slow slow burn. Slowwwwww burnnnnnnn


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: I wrote this at work. And almost got caught by my boss. Thankfully, I'm sneaky. ;)

Jenna stepped carefully over a branch, trying her best not to fall down as they walked through the forest. Elijah had asked her for a tour of Mystic Falls’ historical sights. She had, of course, obliged, complete with maps and as many facts as she could muster. It was fairly obvious that she didn’t do these kinds of things often. Riah looked around the property. Fall had long since come, making the leaves remaining on the sparse trees brown. A decrepit fence started a little ways off by the old, abandoned house. Elijah was fiddling with a stick, pulling off the ends and leaves as they walked. 

“The old Fell property actually starts just beyond that fence,” Jenna said, folding up the map in her hands carefully.

“Ah, the Fells. One of the _’Founding Families’_ ,” Elijah said with a small smile, barely hiding his amusement.

“Why do you say it like that?”

“My research showed me that this area was actually settled almost two full centuries earlier. It was a migration of townsfolk from the northeast, erm, Salem, to be precise.”

“The witches,” Riah said softly.

“Which means the ever-lauded Founding Families… didn’t actually found anything,”

It was starting to make sense to Riah now. She pulled her jacket around her, even though she didn’t need to. There was a rumour about the witches in this place. A story that circulated a long time ago. Azariah had never really put much stock into it. It didn’t seem likely that all those witches could be burned without putting up a fight. Then again, if they were trying to protect those they loved… either way, if it was true, the site would hold a lot of power. More power than one witch could take on alone. It was untapped. If the witches Elijah had brought with him could channel that much power, they’d be strong enough to weaken Klaus. Maybe not to kill him, but Riah and Elijah would take care of that part. Elijah wasn’t here to hold up some kind of ruse. He was here to find out where the witches died.

Azariah and Elijah shared a glance. She was impressed, honestly. He’d done a great job keeping it to himself. It made sense that he wouldn’t want to tell people that. The less people that knew the better. He rested his hand on her lower back, keeping her moving.

“Well,” Jenna smiled, “I bet it was the men who made a big deal about being founders back in 1860. Men are very territorial.”

Elijah looked toward the tree and stopped walking. Alaric Saltzman was making his way to the trio. Jenna looked annoyed to say the least. Riah bit back a groan. There was no point in it.

“Yes, they are,” Elijah sighed.

Alaric walked up to them with a smile. Whether it was out of jealousy or worry, he was there now and they weren’t going to get rid of him. He obviously didn’t want Jenna to be alone with any vampires, let alone two Originals. Elijah kept his hand on Riah’s back. Jenna folded her arms across her chest. She was clearly surprised to see him there. Elijah and Riah were, too.

“Elijah, Riah, this is my… friend, Alaric Saltzman.”

Alaric kept his hands in his pockets. He was turned towards Jenna, but his eyes were locked on Elijah and Riah, like he thought they were going to try something. “Yeah, I, uh, got your message about walking these two through the old property lines. I thought I’d tag along, y’know, being a history buff and all. Where to next?”

“I’m pretty curious about the freed slave property owners. Some say, you know, that the descendants of the slaves are the true keepers of American history.”

“Well, I only brought the surveys. I’ve got that list in my car. Just give me a sec.”

Jenna walked away. It was just the three of them left. They stood in silence until Jenna was out of earshot.

“Alaric Saltzman,” Elijah said. “So, you are one of the people on Elena’s list of loved ones to protect.”

“So is Jenna.” Alaric responded coldly.

“You don’t have to be jealous,” Elijah chuckled. “I don’t really pursue younger women.” Ric looked like he wanted to stake Elijah, even if he knew it wouldn’t kill him. “It’s a joke, Ric, lighten up.” Elijah patted Ric’s shoulder as he walked away.

Azariah waited until Elijah was mostly out of earshot. “Elijah always keeps his word, Ric. I’ve known the man for 1000 years. You’ll be safe.”

“And what about Elena? Did he tell you that he still wants to sacrifice her life?”

“No, but I assumed as much.”

“And you decided not to tell any of us?”

“Because there was no reason to. Besides, I doubt _you_ came upon that information honestly. How is Luka feeling, by the way?” Ric looked down at the ground. “See? If Elijah and I can kill Klaus _and_ spare Elena’s life, then we will. If you won’t trust Elijah, then trust me.”

“I don’t know you any better than I know him.”

Ric started to walk away. Riah grabbed his arm and stopped him in his tracks. “Then trust this - Klaus is cruel, yes, but Elijah and I can be, too. If any of you break Elena’s deal, none of you will ever see her again.”

“That doesn’t exactly make me want to trust you.”

“As you so bluntly put it, Ric, you don’t know me, anyway.” She headed towards Elijah. “Oh, and make sure to pass that message to Damon, too. I’m sure he’s already trying to form a half-baked plan that won’t work.”

Elijah raised an eyebrow at her. He had been listening, obviously. She had expected him to once she hadn’t been following him. Even if Ric didn’t trust Elijah, Azariah did. With her life. She knew something that Ric didn’t, too. She knew about the elixir Elijah had commissioned for Katerina. Even back then, when they would have done almost anything for Klaus, they had never wanted the doppelganger to die. Why would they want it now that it would bring Klaus satisfaction?

It was exhausting having Ric trailing behind them. Riah eventually convinced him to leave by asking for a ride into town. He was reluctant, at best, to do so, but Jenna’s stern voice was enough for him to do it without too much fuss. She was frustrated with him and he didn’t want to make it worse. Riah promised to meet up with Elijah later. The car ride with Ric was silent. He didn’t trust her and Riah had no interest in forcing him to. She just wanted this all to be over with so she could move on. Ric stopped in the town square. Riah reached for the door and stopped.

“We’re on the same side, Ric. Damon may have convinced you that you and you’re little ragtag group of misfits can take on Klaus, but you can’t. Don’t waste this chance.”

She didn’t stay to see his reaction. She headed to the apartment. Jonas was out looking for the witch spirits and Luka was probably off somewhere with Bonnie Bennet. Riah knew that she’d roofied him at some point for information. If they didn’t need witches so badly, Riah might have killed one of them for not being more cautious. Well, she might’ve if she didn’t know why they were helping Elijah in the first place. They really believed that Klaus was manipulating Greta into helping him. It was much more likely that he’d convinced her he loved her so she would do anything that he wanted. He was charming, after all.

He’d fooled his whole family into thinking that he was a good person for centuries. She had to admit that it was hard to ignore his smile. It used to remind her so much of the boy she danced with. She wondered what she would see if Klaus was in front of her now. She had built him up as a demon in her mind. She wasn’t sure that she remembered his actual face anymore. Just the twisted one that had promised Elijah and Azariah that they would be dead if they couldn’t find Katerina.

Elijah didn’t come back for a couple of hours. Riah occupied herself in the meantime, reading the surveys Jenna had given to him and a few of the Founding Family journals that they had been able to dig up, stretched out on the couch. She hoped that one of them might have information on the witches that Elijah had missed, but he had been thorough. He hadn’t missed anything and none of them talked about witches or even vampires. It seemed like these journals had been censored if anything. It was frustrating. She could understand why Elijah wanted to rip out some hearts to blow off some steam.

“If a young, arrogant vampire who has already tried to kill you once invited you to a dinner party,” Elijah said as he came through the door, hanging his coat on the hanger by the door, “would it be wise to believe he was planning something… unseemly?”

Riah closed the journal and set it in her lap. “That’s fairly specific. It would be foolish to think otherwise. Why do you ask?”

“It would seem that you and I have been asked to join Damon Salvatore at his home for dinner and wine.”

“That’s not suspicious at all.”

Elijah sat down on the couch and rested his head in Riah’s lap. She gently brushed his hair away from his face and looked at the wall. She was lost in thought. A dinner party, hm? That was sure to end well. Elijah gently took her wrist and kissed her palm. She rested her hand against his cheek. She smiled down at him. She had always loved sitting with him. Her heart was beating quickly from the proximity. She ran her fingers through his hair while she thought this through. What did they actually know about the Original’s existence? With the exception of the dagger she had taken, Klaus had all of them, didn’t he?

“Well, obviously we’re still going,” Riah said, breaking the silence.

“Of course we are. Even if it is some sort of plot, one of them might have information on where to find where the witches burned,” Elijah responded. “Besides, between the two of us, we can manage them.”

Riah leaned down and kissed Elijah’s cheek before she stood up. She needed to get ready for this dinner party, apparently. She doubted Damon had made it a black tie event, but it would do well to look halfway decent, especially if she was on Elijah’s arm. He was almost always in a suit of some kind. It was easy to look underdressed compared to him. One day, she would outmatch him. It wouldn’t be soon, but it would happen.

****

* * *

****

Elijah knocked on the door. Riah adjusted the hem of her skirt. She didn’t really want to be there now that they had arrived. Her paranoia was starting to get the best of her. She squeezed Elijah’s hand, hoping for some reassurance. He gave her a wink and a smile. That was the best that she could hope for, then. It was just barely enough to calm her nerves before the door opened. Damon leaned against the frame with his usual smug smile.

“Good evening,” Elijah said.

“Thank you for coming. Please, come in.” Damon kept his smile and took a step back.

“Just one moment.” Elijah ran a hand down the door frame, locking eyes with Damon. “Can I just say that if you have less than honorable intentions about how this evening is going to proceed, I suggest you reconsider.”

“No, nothing, nothing dishonorable. Just getting to know you.”

“Hmm. Well, that's good.” Elijah and Azariah entered the house. Elijah looked around, taking in his surroundings. He walked closer to Damon, leaning in towards his ear. His voice lowered slightly just in case there were any… curious ears around them. “Because, you know, although Elena and I have this deal, if you so much as make a move to cross either of us, I'll kill you and I'll kill everyone in this house. Are we clear?”

“Crystal.”

Jenna came out from another part of the house. Azariah smiled and walked over to her.

“Jenna. Wonderful to see you again. How are you?” She asked.

Elijah and Damon glared at each other for another moment before Elijah joined Riah and Jenna. Damon stayed by the door. Jenna brought them into the dining room table. Alaric was there, along with a man and a woman that Riah didn’t recognise. They introduced themselves as John, Elena’s uncle, and Andie, Damon’s girlfriend. From the looks of the scarf around her neck, she was more of a free source of blood than a girlfriend. Everyone sat down. Jenna started pouring wine.

The food was surprisingly delicious. Riah wondered if Damon had anything to do with it. John and Damon clearly didn’t like each other. Actually, it seemed like they all hated each other to a certain extent. Jenna was completely oblivious to the danger that she was actually in. Riah liked Jenna well enough, but she would make good on Elijah’s threats. It was a… nice evening. Jenna reached over to refill Damon’s glass. For the most part.

“I hate to break it to you, Damon, but according to Elijah and Azariah, your family is so not a founder of this town,” she said, grinning all the while.

“Hmm, do tell.”

“Well, as I mentioned to Jenna earlier, a faction of settlers migrated from Salem after the witch trials in the 1690s. Over the next hundred years they developed this community where they could feel safe from persecution.”

“Hmm. Because they were witches.”

Jenna was the only one who chuckled at that little joke. She was the only one who didn’t know the truth, after all. Riah leaned back in her chair with her wine glass dangling loosely from her fingertips. She took a deep breath before speaking.

“That is the general consensus, yes,” Riah said. “Of course, there were no witches killed during the trials. There are those that believe the real practitioners of magic allowed innocent people to be hanged in their place so they could escape to little havens like this.”

“Yeah, but there's no tangible proof there were witches in Salem,” Andie responded.

“Andie's a journalist. Big on facts.”

“Well, the lore says that there was this wave of anti-witch hysteria. It broke out in the neighboring settlement, so these witches were rounded up. They were tied to stakes in a field together and, uh, burned. Some say you could hear the screams from miles around us. They were consumed by the fire. Could you pass the…”

Riah handed him the salt, kicking his foot under the table. He was getting more into detail now than he needed to. He was usually more subtle about these things.

“Of course, there’s not any mention of where the site is.”

“I wouldn't repeat this to the Historical Society,” Jenna took a sip of her wine.

“It's starting to sound a little like a ghost story to me.” John scoffed.

“So, why do you want to know the location of these alleged massacres?”

“You know...a healthy historian's curiosity, of course.”

“Of course.”

Damon looked a little too suspicious of them and Elijah’s smile was a little too nervous. Azariah leaned forward and set her glass down. She was starting to feel that paranoia building up again. She had worked with Damon for a couple of months. She knew that he hated playing things by other people’s rules. She had a feeling that despite the warnings given by herself and Elijah, he was still going to try something. Bonnie was probably somewhere in the house waiting to try some magic on them while their guards were down. She looked around at the people there. How would they look with their necks snapped?

“You know, my family has kept journals for generations. There might be something helpful to your research in the study, if you two would like to look through them,” Damon suggested.

“That is surprisingly generous of you, Damon, but we’d hate to impose,” Riah said,

“No imposition at all. It would be my pleasure.”

“I don’t see a reason not to look, Riah,” Elijah set his napkin on the table. “Shall we?”

Riah was reluctant to leave the table. Two Originals could take on a vampire less than 2 centuries old any day but it had become her instinct to run away from possibly dangerous situations. If Damon actually did have information on where the witches burned… It was too good of an opportunity to pass up. She clenched her fists and walked to the study. Jenna put John to work cleaning up the table while they were gone. Azariah kept her hands in her pockets. She could feel the brush of cold metal on her fingertips. The only silver dagger Klaus didn’t have was always with her. She was safe. Elijah was safe. Even if they weren’t, it wasn’t exactly like they had two daggers, anyway. One of them would be awake to revive the other. She wasn’t going to be in a box again.

Damon walked to the drinks immediately, pouring three glasses. He held one up to Elijah. He took it but didn’t drink it. Azariah declined the same offer. She circled the room, looking around the different volumes. Most of the journals were probably Stefan’s. It was still an impressive collection. Damon downed the glass of scotch himself.

“So, let me guess. In addition to the moonstone, the doppelgänger, the lion, the witch and the wardrobe, you need to find this witch burial ground,” Damon said.

“Because I feel as though we've grown so close, Damon, I'll tell you yes. Do you know where it is?” Elijah asked.

“Maybe. Tell me why it's so important.”

“We're not that close.” Elijah narrowed his eyes. 

He walked over to Azariah, looking at the same book set she had her eyes on. She instinctively smelled the drink. It was too strong to tell if there was any vervain in it. Elijah hadn’t taken a sip. He put his hand on her lower back again.

“It’s a rather impressive collection of books,” Riah said, “though I still prefer the days when storytellers and minstrels were more important. Books… they seem to have taken that away. Of course, it seems that even the written word is coming to an end.”

Damon made a soft noise from far away. Riah heard quick approaching footsteps. As she turned around, the doors burst open. Alaric and Andie walked into the room. Alaric looked a little shocked to see Riah and Elijah standing as he glanced over to Damon. 

“We forgot about dessert,” Ric said.

“Elijah.” Andie held out her hand to Elijah.

“Miss Star…”

Elijah handed his glass to Damon, who was quick to drain it. Elijah took Andie’s hand, twirling her as they walked out of the room together. Azariah was slower to leave. Alaric’s eyes didn’t leave her as she walked through the doors. Something was going on here and she didn’t like it. She kept her ears on the library, hoping to catch some glimpse of a conversation. The silence made her even more suspicious. There was something that they didn’t want to be heard. That was never a good sign. As she walked into the dining room, Jenna was pouring a few cups of coffee. John was sitting back down and taking small sips from his own mug.

“Sorry, guys, dessert is taking longer than I thought. I usually just unwrap food,” Jenna joked.

“Please, take your time, Jenna. There’s no need to rush for us.” Riah smiled at her. It would be a shame to kill her.

“So...I know this is a social thing, but I...I would really love to ask you some more questions about the work that you're doing here, Elijah.” Andie was leaning forward. She was showing a bit more cleavage than she had been before.

“I'd love to answer.”

“Great, that's so great.”

Azariah could practically hear the blood rushing to her cheeks. Andie was developing a little crush, it seemed. Elijah shot her a look that told her to keep quiet about it so she did. Damon and Alaric came back into the room. They had to have been talking about something so why hadn’t she heard anything? There was no smell of burning sage so it wasn’t a spell. Not that they had a witch to perform a spell like that here anyway. Damon sat down and immediately started glaring at John. That was hardly a good sign. Andie asked Ric to grab her notebook for her while he was up.

“So, did John tell you he's Elena's uncle-slash-father?” Damon asked.

“Yes, I'm well aware of that.”

Azariah certainly wasn’t. That was a new one.

“Of course, she hates him, so there's absolutely no need to keep him on the endangered species list.”

Andie left the table to go help Ric find her notebook. John leaned forward against the table, resting his chin on his hands.

“What I'd like to know is how do you intend on killing Klaus?”

Azariah laughed and shook her head. “Aw, they think we’re friends. How cute. Utterly disappointing and very human, but cute.”

“Riah, manners.” Elijah scolded. “Gentlemen, there's a few things we should probably get clear right now. I allow you to live solely to keep an eye on Elena. I allow Elena to remain in her house living her life with her friends as she does as a courtesy. If you become a liability, I'll take her away from you and you'll never see her again.”

John and Damon both looked smuggly defiant. Andie came back with her notebook and sat next to Elijah. She looked eager to get these answers. She opened her mouth to say something. Riah never heard what it was. Before a single sound left Andie’s mouth, a sharp, stabbing pain ripped through her back, through her heart. She cried out, looking down to see a silver dagger sticking out of her chest.

_He’ll bring me back_

That was her only thought as the darkness consumed her.

****

* * *

Riah woke with a start. She was in… the basement of the Salvatore house. She felt around her chest. No dagger, but a rather large hole and a lot of blood in a shirt that she really liked. Oh, she was going to take great joy in ripping Damon’s head off. Elijah was next to her, slowly coming back to life. When he finally sat up, he looked even more furious than she felt.

“Elena’s at the lakehouse. Grab her. I’ll take care of them.” She gestured up.

“Meet me back at the apartment. We’ll make arrangements to hide Elena from their witch there.”

Elijah got up to walk away. Riah grabbed his arm.

“Elijah, wait.” She pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Come back alive, understand? And bring me back if they kill me again.”

“Only if you promise the same.”

“Always and forever.”

He smiled a little at those words before disappearing to go to his car. Riah listened to what was going on upstairs. There was light conversation and something about why she and Elijah had left so abruptly. She rushed away herself. They were sure to learn the truth soon enough if they didn’t know already. 

The thing about Riah was that she wasn’t quite as bloody as the rest of the Originals. As much as she loved torture and killing (as much as any vampire did, really. It had become a numb feeling over the years), she was much more a fan of psychological pain. There was only so much that the human mind could take before it was broken. Just making random sounds in different parts of an old house could do wonders. Another great thing about big houses: it was easy to separate people. People like Jenna.

She was still in the kitchen, working on a dessert that no one would eat. Riah appeared behind her and tapped her shoulder. Jenna turned around and jumped. She held her hand over her heart. Riah could hear it beating quickly. 

“Jesus! You scared me, Riah. I thought you-”

“Were leaving? I was, but I seem to have forgotten something.” She put her hands on Jenna’s shoulders to hold her in place. She ripped the vervain necklace from her neck, ignoring the burn it left. “Now, I need you to keep your mouth shut for me, yes?” Jenna nodded. Her eyes were widened in fear. “Perfect. Hold on tight.”

Riah moved her to the second floor and compelled her to stay in place. Alaric was yelling at John about something. It sounded like Riah’s prediction had been right. They knew now that the daggers had to stay in place to have any effect. It seemed to dawn on them a little too late that they didn’t know where she or Elijah were. Alaric called out Jenna’s name. She looked like she wanted to call out to him, too. Love. Ah, what a wonderfully horrid thing it was. 

“‘O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?!” Riah yelled out. She held a hand dramatically to her chest, looking to the ceiling. “Deny thy father and refuse thy name! Or if thou wilt not, but sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.” Alaric and John rushed to where they could see her. Riah held Jenna’s neck, leaning her over the balcony. “Though I suppose it’s Jenna who should be reciting those lines. Tell me, Jenna, do you know any Shakespeare?” Jenna shook her head frantically. “Of course not. A pity. I would’ve loved to hear your rendition of Juliet. Don’t try it, Ric!” Riah looked at Ric trying to head to the stairs. “You had one job, Alaric. Stay in line. Leave it be.”

“You were going to kill Elena!”

“No. _Klaus_ is going to kill Elena. And now, I’m going to kill Jenna.” She looked over at her. “You can scream now.”

Azariah bared her fangs and bit down on Jenna’s neck. Warm blood started to fill her mouth, but Riah wasn’t there to feed. Not this time. Jenna’s screams of horror and pain filled the air. Riah bit down, tearing flesh and letting more and more blood flow. She pushed Jenna away from her and dropped her over the balcony. She wiped her mouth with her sleeve. It was already ruined, anyway. Jenna’s body landed with a heavy thud. There wasn’t a crack of bone or anything remotely like that. If she was still alive, she was going to feel all of that pain. Ric ran to Jenna, unsure of what to do. Considering the fact that Damon wasn’t already on the second floor next to Riah, it was safe to assume that they had deemed Elijah the bigger threat. A big mistake on their part.

“And now, I’m going to kill you, too. The deal’s off.”

She raced down to the first floor. John had already fled. She’d find him later. She bared her fangs again, ready to bite Alaric’s neck when she felt that pain in her back again. She looked down. A… dagger? But… if it was here, then where was… she realised that she couldn’t feel the weight of the dagger in her pocket anymore. She’d been so focused on revenge that the thought hadn’t even occurred to her. Riah fell into Ric’s arms. The all to familiar darkness encompassed her, leaving her with nothing but the fear that she would never wake up again.


	22. **Chapter 22**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, the asterisks. See, asterisks indicate NSFW content in inbound. So. You've been warned.

Riah gasped for air as she rose. She immediately started scratching at her chest, reaching for a dagger that wasn’t there anymore. She could feel her heart pounding against her chest, telling her to run and find safety. She looked around wildly. They weren’t in the basement like they had been before and she doubted that anyone willingly took the dagger out of her chest after what she’d done to Jenna. Elijah brushed her hair back, shushing her gently. Azariah felt tears building up in her eyes. She pulled him into a hug, not daring to let a single sob escape. He held her close, promising her that she was safe now. In his arms, she was. She knew that there wasn’t a single place safer. He had brought her back, just like he promised.

“Here, you need to drink.” He pulled away from her, biting down on his wrist. “I’m sorry it’s not a blood bag, but I didn’t have time to grab one.”

She greedily attached to his arm, drinking his blood gratefully. She knew what this meant. Bloodsharing was… intimate. To put it simply, he would never have done this for any of his siblings, no matter the situation. Vampires could, for the most part, survive on each other’s blood. Sometimes it was out of necessity. Other times, it was a show of trust. For younger vampires, it could be like putting their life in the hands of another. Riah wasn’t sure what it was this time. Of course, it was best if the vampire you were feeding off of was well-fed themselves. Otherwise it was like drinking sludge. From Elijah, it was like the best wine. She forced restraint and moved back. She gently wiped the blood from her mouth. The wound on Elijah’s wrist healed fast. She leaned back into his chest.

“How long was I gone?”

“About as long as I was. Elena and I spent the day together.” 

She looked up at him. “Then you were-”

“Yes, it would seem they got the better of us both.” 

Elijah presented her with two silver daggers. She looked at them with disdain. She quickly turned her gaze away. Elijah pressed the handle of one against her palm. She closed her fingers slowly. It was back with her. Safe and sound.

“There’s something else. It would see that Klaus is in town.”

“What?!” Riah practically jumped out of his arms.

“Elena and I have renewed the deal and we’re going to kill him. Now that he’s in town, our deadline is a little closer than I would have liked, but it’s coming nonetheless.”

“And you trust her?”

“Of course I don’t. I’ve learned my lesson about trusting doppelgangers, believe me. But we need her for this to work. We don’t have much other choice. Now, let’s get you changed. We have a meeting with them in the morning and your clothes are mostly burned and destroyed.”

Elijah held out his hand to her. She took it gratefully. He helped back to her feet. She hated the feeling of being revived. She always felt… dead for hours after. She looked down at her clothes. Apparently, Damon had had a fun time trying to figure out how to get the daggers back without reviving them. Elijah had told Elena almost everything. She knew that Klaus was cursed by Esther. The sun and moon curse was a sham created by the Original family to find what they needed. 

“And there’s something else, too. Elena knows now that we can save her life,” Elijah said.

“We can?”

“Indeed.” He walked to the chest of drawers in the corner. 

After a moment of searching, he pulled out an ornate box. Azariah recognised it instantly. She lifted the lid and there it was. The elixir they had commissioned from the witches in an attempt to save Katerina’s life. It had failed because she decided to take matters into her own hands. She could have saved them all a lot of trouble if she’d just trusted Riah and Elijah to keep her safe like they promised they would. Things would have been so different. Riah ran a finger over the glass. Elijah really had kept it safe all of this time. Why? He had truly believed that Katerina’s line ended with her, just like the rest of them did. What was the point of keeping an elixir that had no use. Elijah placed his hand over hers.

She looked up at him. He has a soft expression on his face. He gently ran his thumb across her cheek, wiping a tear she hadn’t even realised was there. She kept his hand there, craving his touch. She had yearned for it for so long that having it so readily available now felt like a dream. She was scared that she was going to wake up if he moved away.

“It’ll all be over soon,” she said quietly. 

“Yes, it will be.” Elijah promised. “You need to get some rest, Azariah.”

“I’ve been in a magical slumber for weeks. I’ve gotten plenty of it.”

“We both know that isn’t true.”

Unfortunately, Elijah was right. Riah knew that he was. Waking up from desiccation was exhausting. Their bodies overexerted themselves trying to get blood to flow through dried up veins. That was the reason they usually had to drink blood immediately after waking up. It was the only way to feel alive again. Copious amounts of actual sleep were also recommended. And even though both daggers were in their possession, one of them in Riah’s hand, she still couldn't help but feel scared that something was going to happen to her. Something… something bad. She had been so confident that she would never be daggered again. Now that she’d been proven wrong, she was scared that it would happen again. How could she sleep when that fear was the one thing keeping her awake?

It didn’t seem fair to try and burden Elijah with that. The full moon was close and Klaus was _here_. Elijah had enough bothering him already. He was going to kill his brother in less than a day. Despite the brave face he was putting on, Riah knew that it was weighing on him and it would continue to for the rest of his life.

“Riah, sleep. Please.”

“No. I… I can’t.” Her voice was barely above a whisper but it felt like it echoed through the empty apartment.

“You don’t need to be scared when I’m here. I will never let anything happen to you. I swear it.”

“I know that, I do. I’ll do the same for you, always, but… Klaus kept me daggered for almost a hundred years once. I can’t even remember what we were fighting about when he decided he was tired of me. I just remember waking up in a strange place in a new century. You never felt it the same way that the rest of us did. He always trusted you and wanted you around. Always. I’m still scared that it’ll happen to me again. I’m scared that one day, when I wake up, I’ll be completely alone.”

Elijah hugged her, pressing her head against his chest so she could feel his steady heartbeat. “I won’t let you be alone ever again, Riah. After this is done, you and I will go anywhere in the world that you want to. Just the two of us. But you have to sleep now.”

She sighed. “Lay with me until I do?”

“Of course I will.”

She felt like a child asking a parent to keep the lights on. She changed into an old shirt and a pair of comfortable pants. It was really all that was at the apartment that she could change into at the moment. It was certainly better than the destroyed clothes she’d been in before. Riah, still a little hesitant, crawling under the covers of one of the beds. Elijah laid down behind her. She stiffened when she felt his breath on her neck. She’d asked him to be there, but she was used to being alone. Without really thinking about it, she leaned back against him. She could feel his heart pounding. Its beat mimicked her own. They stayed like that for a few moments before Elijah eventually wrapped his arms gently around her waist and pulled her closer. She was grateful for his presence.

She turned around to face him. She hadn’t taken into account just how close they actually were. Elijah’s breath hitched as her nose brushed against his. His hands were still on her hips. She noticed that he hadn’t changed out of his suit. He’d thrown his jacket over a chair and even unbuttoned more of his shirt after he’d rolled the sleeves up. It was the most casual she had seen him since they’d met again. It had been a long, long time since they had lain like this together. He was still the most handsome man that she had ever seen, trapped in his youth for all eternity. Riah brought her hands up, running them along his arms and stopping before his exposed chest. She leaned forward, carefully pressing her lips against his. Elijah hesitated before kissing her back. His lips were as soft as she remembered. She should have done this when she’d first seen him. She should have run across that street and thrown herself into his arms, profusely apologising for everything.

Elijah gently pushed her away. He pressed his forehead against hers. “Riah, are you sure? The last time that we… you put a stop to it after what Katerina said.”

“I’m sure, Elijah. You have no idea how sure I am.” She kissed him again. “Klaus brought up Finn and I was reminded that…” she didn’t want to say anything about Ayana and Esther. Not now. “I love you, Elijah. I have since we were children and I always will.”

It was the first time that she had said the words aloud to him. She had thought of them many times. She had written them down. But she’d never said them to anyone and she’d certainly never said them to Elijah. He didn’t say anything. Instead, he dug his hands into her hips and pulled her into another kiss. Her chest was flush against his. This kiss wasn’t chaste. It was filled with a hunger she had been sure was reserved for blood. She held onto his shirt trying to bring him even closer. Neither of them cared when the fabric ripped.

Riah pushed him onto his back, straddling his hips. She broke away from their kiss, ripping his shirt off the rest of the way. The mangled fabric ended up somewhere on the floor. Elijah rose to meet her, biting down on her neck. Hard. She could feel her own blood running down her neck and she didn’t care, letting out a shaky moan. He was quick to flip them around, grinding his hips against hers. She was more than willing to spread her legs to make room for him. The simplest touch of his skin against hers felt like a thousand sparks of electricity. She was desperate to get more of that feeling. She ran her fingers along his chest, digging her nails in just hard enough to draw little droplets of blood to the surface. 

Elijah kissed along her jawline, bringing his hands up into her hair. He pulled back with just enough force to make Riah hiss. She arched her back into him. Elijah pulled up the hem of her shirt. Just the barest feeling of his fingers on her skin felt like fire. She helped him pull the shirt over her head. She wrapped a leg around his waist, letting his hard length rub against her core. There were too many clothes keeping them apart still. Elijah backed away from her for a moment, looking down with something unrecognizable in his eyes. His chocolate brown eyes were darkened by lust but he was taking this moment to just… stare. It made her feel a little self-conscious. Her body hadn’t changed in 1,000 years (a perk of being dead) but Elijah had a knack for finding the flaws in anything. Being under his scrutinous gaze was…

“It’s nothing you haven’t seen before,” she joked.

“It’s not everyday a man can gaze at perfection,” he said. “I missed you.”

Elijah didn’t give her a chance to respond, capturing her lips. He coaxed her mouth open and slid his tongue against hers, smooth and soft. She bit his lip when he tried to move away. His kisses were making her delirious. Or maybe it was the taste of his blood in her mouth. Either way, she never wanted him to be away from her again. Elijah eventually got away from her, his kisses trailing down her cheeks, her jaw, to her clavicle. He placed a few sharp kisses there before continuing his trek down. He kept his hands on her knees, pressing Riah’s legs apart to give him better access. In one swift movement, he pulled off the sweatpants she’d put on and ripped off her underwear. She opened her mouth in protest.

“I’ll buy you a new pair,” he promised.

Riah watched with bated breath as he trailed kisses down her thighs. He worshipped her skin in ways that were already driving her insane. It felt like a lifetime before his warm breath finally brushed over her folds. 

“You always were a tease,” she complained. 

Elijah let out a low laugh before he trailed his tongue through the slick heat of her. She let out a moan, winding her fingers in his hair. His tongue flicked up and it set her on fire. She allowed her eyes to close. His calloused hands kept her legs apart to continue his ministrations. Riah let herself get lost in the sensations. Elijah took her clit into his lips. Riah instinctively arched her back into him. She grabbed at the sheets to give herself some form of control. She could feel his smile against her skin. 

Riah bit her lip as his tongue dipped into her. She let out a stilted moan, pushing her hips closer to him still. He easily slipped a finger inside of her, and then another. He thrusted softly, never stopping his attention to her clit. Her breath came in short gasping moans as her peak came closer. Closer. She rocked her hips against his hand. She chased the high. She didn’t stop until it washed over her. Her whole body shivered and ached for his touch still. Elijah pumped his fingers a while longer, coaxing her through her orgasm.

Elijah finally pulled away, wiping the slick from his face with the back of his hand. He moved up and kissed her again. She could taste herself on his tongue. Riah grabbed his belt, forcing it to come undone. She was done with the waiting. This was what she had been missing most. He was more than happy to help her remove the last few barriers between them.

Azariah gently wrapped her hand around his length, giving him a few good pumps. He rested his head against her shoulder. His own breath was becoming shaky, his needs apparent on his face. She loved watching how easily she could make him come undone. Elijah Mikaelson, the brother who always had self control and patience, falling apart in her hands. He was an intimidating figure to most, always so calm and collected. She was enthralled with this side of him. She always had been. She leaned up and pulled him into another heated kiss as she lined him up with her entrance.

In one fluid motion, Elijah was fully sheathed. Riah arched her back and her chest pressed against his. His hands were resting on her hips, nails digging in just enough to give her the perfect amount of pain and pleasure. If she’d been human, it would have left bruises for sure. She trailed soft kisses along his jaw and ran her fingers along his broad shoulders as he pulled out again. When he finally thrust back, she bit down into his neck. Elijah let out a low moan. Riah’s own sounds were muffled. His blood flooded her system. From it, she could feel his emotions pouring into her. Blood sharing, especially in moments like this… oh, she could barely focus on the thought.

Elijah picked up his pace, slamming into her with his thumb pressed roughly against her clit. She could feel another orgasm coming quickly. Elijah intertwined his fingers with hers, pressing his forehead against her shoulder. His breathing was shallow. That was the most noise that he would make. It was enough to spur Azariah on. His stoic demeanour, his dignified stance, there was no sign of that now. No one would ever believe the things that he whispered into her ear as he was brought closer to his own peak. Riah moaned his name as she came again. It seemed that was enough to push him over the edge with a low groan. 

Elijah collapsed on top of her. She rubbed soft circles into his back. Riah kissed his shoulder again. He reached up and wiped some of his blood from the corner of her mouth. It seemed that they had made more of a mess than she’d initially realised.

****

* * *

****

They went to the Salvatore house in the morning. Elena invited Riah inside. Elijah had the ornate box under his arm, keeping it close to him. It was time to really get serious about killing Klaus. This was going to be their only chance. The plan needed to be executed without a single hitch. If they were very, very lucky, the spirits would be on their side and they’d be able to do this. Elena, Stefan, Elijah, and Azariah gathered in the study.

“Tonight is the full moon,” Elijah said. “We should assume that Klaus is prepared to break the curse.”

“Elena said that the Sun and the Moon curse is fake? That it's actually just a curse placed on Klaus.” Stefan crossed his arms.

Azariah nodded. She leaned against the table. “Klaus is a vampire born of a werewolf bloodline. The curse has kept his werewolf aspect from manifesting. But if he breaks it…”

“He'll be a true hybrid.” Elijah finished her thought.

Damon came bounding downstairs. “Then why are we letting him break the curse? We can kill him today. With Bonnie.”

“No. Bonnie can't use that much power without dying.”

Damon and Elena started arguing about whether or not Bonnie should die doing this. Azariah started pacing. It seemed that Damon wasn’t willing to take any chances. If she was being honest, Riah wasn’t willing to, either. He wasn’t wrong that Bonnie would be powerful enough to kill Klaus now and she’d die in the process. That wasn’t the worst thing in the world. What was one life against the thousands that would be saved if Klaus was dead? Elena was insistent that it wouldn’t happen. She wouldn’t even consider it.

“All right, how do we break this curse?” Stefan asked, interrupting Elena and Damon.

“Well, the ritual itself is relatively straightforward. The ingredients, so to speak, you already know,” Elijah said.

“The moonstone.”

“A witch will channel the power of the full moon to release the spell that's bound within the stone. After that, Klaus, being both werewolf and vampire, will sacrifice one of each.” Riah explained.

“And where do I fit into it?”

“The final part of the ritual.” Elijah set the wooden box on the table with just as much care as he had carried it. “Klaus must drink the blood of the doppelgänger...to the point of your death.” Elijah opened the box, gently taking the jar from it. It had been sealed with wax 500 years ago. That seal had never been broken. It looked just as pristine as the day Elijah had presented it to her.

“And that's where you come in.”

“This is an elixir that we acquired some 500 years ago for Katerina. It possesses mystical properties of resuscitation.”

“So I'll be dead?”

“And then you won't.”

“That's your plan? A magical witch potion with no expiration date?” Damon turned to Elena and scoffed. “You want to come back to life, what about John's ring?”

Azariah shook her head. “Those rings were enchanted to work on humans only. The doppelganger is supernatural in nature. More likely than not, the ring will do nothing for her.”

“I'll take those odds over your elixir. What if it doesn't work, Elena?”

Elena shrugged. “Then I guess I'll just be dead.”

Damon looked between Stefan and Elijah. He couldn’t believe that this was something they were considering. He left the room just as quickly as he had entered it.

“Do we know if Klaus has everything he needs to do this? Does he have a werewolf?”

“Klaus has been waiting to break this curse for over a thousand years. If he doesn't already have a werewolf, my guess is by tonight, he will.” 

Elena nodded. Riah could see the fear in her eyes. Elena had been talking about sacrificing herself for her family this whole time but there had always been the chance that the time wouldn’t come. Riah wasn’t sure that Elena wanted to do this anymore, but she would anyway. Elena Gilbert was determined, to say the least. She would do what it took to protect her family, even if it meant her death. Stefan left to talk to Damon or at least see where he went. Elijah set the jar down in its case. Elena looked at it curiously.

“You'd think he'd understand why I'm willing to do this.”

Elijah looked over at her. “Why are you?”

“I'm the key to breaking the curse. Klaus is here because of me. If I don't stop him, then he's going to hurt people. It's that simple.”

“You know, there's a possibility this elixir won't work. I don't want to mislead you.”

“I know the chance I'm taking.”

Three heads turned as Jenna shouted at the front door. Riah ran to her. Jenna was wielding a crossbow pointed directly at Alaric’s chest. From the way that Ric’s eyes never left Jenna, Riah was certain that Klaus had left him. He’d want to be in his own body to break the curse anyway. It made sense that he’d let Alaric go. For now, anyway. It didn’t mean that he wasn’t compelled. She doubted Klaus had been downing vervain while in that body.

“Jenna, put the crossbow down, okay? It's me,” Alaric said.

“Stay away from me.” Jenna demanded. 

The other four came into the foyer. Riah stepped forward and pushed the crossbow down towards the ground. She was confident.

“It’s Ric,” she said.

“What makes you so confident?” Jenna asked.

“Because Klaus hasn’t seen me in 500 years. He would have no reason to believe that I would be in town or anywhere near him. Klaus is too dramatic to miss an opportunity for some kind of snarky remark on that.”

“Why’d he let you go?” Stefan asked.

“He wanted me to deliver a message. The sacrifice happens tonight.”

Elijah and Riah left to give Jenna and Alaric a moment. Riah sat down on one of the many couches and lounged back. Klaus never was one to stay patient. The way he saw it, he’d waited long enough. Any longer would just be an insult at this point. Elijah looked down at her and sighed. 

“It’ll be over soon. Where would you like to go first?” He asked.

“Hm, that’s a very good question. Well, I did go to Italy in the 19th century. I’m sure, of course, you’ve been since the 12th, but we haven’t gone together since then. It might be nice to see some sights and pretend to be simple tourists for a while,” she said with a soft smile.

“Italy it is, then.”

There was a commotion upstairs. Elena yelling, then screaming. Stefan and Damon fighting. Damon had given his blood. Riah glanced at the elixir. The one thing the witches had told Elijah not to do was allow whoever drank it to ingest the blood of a vampire before death. There wasn’t enough time for the blood to leave Elena’s system now. After a few moments, Damon came downstairs and poured himself a drink. Elijah closed the box.

“You couldn’t leave well enough alone, could you, Damon?” Riah shook her head.

“Well, it sounds like you won't be needing this anymore. Feeding her vampire blood rendered it useless. Tell Elena I'll be back before nightfall. We'll proceed as planned.”

“We all know that elixir wouldn't have worked anyway.” 

“The problem, Damon: you talk a good game but you don't actually know anything. She'll never forgive you. And never for a vampire…” Elijah looked over at Azariah. “It's a very long time.”

He held out his hand to her. She took it and they walked out of the house together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You've made it. The burn has reached it's final point and you got it. They're together. The slow burn is over. Congratulations and thank you for staying this long


	23. **Chapter 23**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wasn't originally going to be an asterisk kinda chapter. But that's the way it went. So... enjoy :D

They had several hours to kill before it would be time to gather for the sacrifice. Elijah and Riah were determined to spend as much of that time together as they possibly could. If this failed, they would never know another moment’s peace from Klaus. He would chase them to the ends of the earth, just as he had for Katerina. He’d dagger them and throw them to be with the rest of the family. This calm before the storm was potentially the last calm that they would ever have. Riah wanted to spend that time with Elijah by her side more than anything else.

It was too nice of a day for what was meant to happen that night. The sun was high in the sky. People walked around, talking and being friendly because they had no idea how many others were going to die once the moon had risen. Even just walking through the town square of Mystic Falls was too… serene. A part of Riah was waiting for Klaus to appear next to them and do something to screw this all up. He’d probably just dagger them. She shuddered at the thought. Elijah squeezed her hand.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded. “What about you? After tonight… he’ll be gone.”

Elijah looked at the ground. “Niklaus is my brother. I have loved him and I have hated him. I have forgiven him too many times. What he did to them… Rebekah, Kol, and Finn… he ensured that they could never return. I will never see them again. He needs to pay for that.”

“Elijah, you don’t have to kill him. I can. You don’t need that on your conscience.”

“It has to be me, Azariah. I need to look in his eyes and watch him die.”

Riah leaned against him. It would weigh on him for the rest of his life. They both knew that. Still, he was probably right. This was something that he needed to do. Klaus had taken the last things keeping Elijah tied to his humanity. Elijah had dedicated so much of his life to keeping them all safe. He kept them fed and clothed. He kept a roof over their heads and kept them moving when Mikael was on their trail. His family was everything to him. It always had been. It was one of the things that Riah both loved and hated about Elijah. He used to be willing to do anything, even at the cost of his own safety, to make sure that the others stayed alive and as happy as they could possibly be. That same devotion to family had left him blind to so many of Klaus’s indiscretions over the years. 

Azariah couldn’t blame him for that, either. She had felt the same devotion for half of her life. The fear hadn’t come in until Katerina arrived and the possibility of breaking the curse became real to Klaus. Despite everyone’s best efforts, he had never felt like he was a part of their family once he knew that Mikael wasn’t his real father. Riah did her best not to feel offended by that sentiment, seeing as she didn’t share their parentage at all. But Klaus, he wanted his own race. He didn’t want to be alone. Even now, Riah couldn’t help but feel sympathy for him. Maybe even especially now. She had actually been alone. There were nights that she had wished for the comfort of her family. It hurt. And for a vampire, that hurt was only magnified. Sometimes, it was unbearable.

“Azariah, why did you leave?” Elijah asked. 

“We’ve talked about this, Elijah. I was-”

“Scared of Klaus, I know. I mean _me_. Why did you leave me?”

She stopped walking and looked at the ground. That was a much more difficult question. She took a deep breath.

“Do you know why Esther and Mikael chose Finn over you?” 

Elijah shook his head.

“Esther knew that you and I cared for each other. She had seen the way that we acted. In fact, you were her first choice. But she was… scared, I supposed of our union, so she asked Ayana to look to the future as best as she could. Ayana saw only death. Death and horror and nothing else in our future. I married Finn when we were human because I didn’t want that life to be forced on you. Then we weren’t human. Still, it seemed like everytime that you and I tried to be together, something along the same lines of blood and death would take over. So I made the choice again.”

“You made the choice for me.”

“And I’ve regretted it every time. I’m sorry, Elijah.”

He sighed heavily. “Our lives are always going to have those things, Riah. We kill people to survive. It’s what we are.”

“I know that. Well, I know that _now_ , anyway. If that’s what we have to endure regardless, then we should endure it together.” She took his hand. “I won’t leave you again, Elijah. You have my word.”

She brought her other hand to rest against his cheek, gently rubbing her thumb against his skin. Elijah kissed her palm. “And you have mine.”

Elijah leaned down and kissed her. Riah wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing him closer. She didn’t want to think about what was on its way come nightfall. She wanted this moment to last an eternity.

**_1114_ **

“I’ve turned Sage,” Finn said.

“You did _what?_ ” Azariah rounded on him.

Finn stood tall. He stood proud. He looked down at her without any expression. The two of them had done nothing but fight since they had gotten to Italy. Before, when they’d been moving, they didn’t have to see each other. In the castle, they could stay in different wings. The estate in Rome was significantly smaller. They constantly saw each other and each encounter turned into a screaming match. If he was physically able to die, Riah would have ripped Finn’s head off by now. She knew about Sage. She had known for a couple of weeks now. The whole family knew at this point. Sage had been a simple servant when she first came into their lives. She spent far too much time with Finn for that to be their relationship. Klaus had stopped Riah from killing her based on that suspicion. She suspected that Finn was fucking her.

She never would have imagined that Finn would _turn_ her.

“Sage and I are in love. We want to be together. Forever.”

“Well, isn’t that just lovely? Finn Mikaelson is in _love_. Have you forgotten that we are _married_ , Finn? We said our vows and we swore our lives to one another. I let you have your fun, but this is too much.”

“We swore our lives and then we died, Azzie.”

“Don’t call me that.” She turned away from him. She could feel tears stinging her eyes. “Don’t you dare.”

“Azariah, please-”

“You had better hope that your dear _Sage_ and I never met again. I swear I will rip out her heart while you watch and I will feed it to the dogs.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“Don’t I? Would you like to find out?”

She left without saying another word. As she ran away from that dreadful room, she had a hand over her mouth to try and quiet her sobs. The last thing she wanted was for Finn to know how much he had gotten to her. For over 100 years, she had been loyal to Finn. She had pushed aside all of her other feelings and temptations to please him and yet it seemed that he had absolutely no desire to do the same. She fled to her chambers, slamming the door shut behind her. She sat down on the edge of one of the couches and cried. Azariah knew that she and Finn had never been in love. For a while, it seemed like they might have been, but it was replaced with a hole two years before they were turned. Nothing they did could mend the gap that had grown between them. Riah could feel that hole in her heart even now. Staying with Finn, being loyal to him… she had thought that she’d been doing the right thing. How could she have been so wrong?

It was even worse that he had turned this… servant girl. Finn was very vocal in how much he despised vampirism. He hated drinking blood and killing where the others seemed to revel in it. Niklaus was always quick to call Finn a bore. Despite that, Finn had turned Sage. He had given her the life that he was so certain was a curse and cast Rih to the side like she meant nothing. Like she meant less than nothing. He had told her so casually. It was almost as if he’d expected her not to care at all. He was foolish. He had always been foolish. Riah was even more a fool for shedding tears over him.

There was a soft knock at her door. Riah groaned. The last thing she wanted was to see anyone.

“Go away!” she yelled.

The intruder did not go away. Instead, they opened the door and invited themselves in. She was mortified to see Elijah step in. He closed the door behind him. Riah turned her head away. He sat next to her with a sigh and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“What has my idiot older brother done now?” Elijah asked.

“He turned her.” Riah sniffed.

“What? He turned who?”

“Her! That… girl he thinks we don’t know about. Sage. He turned her.”

Elijah’s expression grew dark. He started to get up from the couch. Azariah grabbed his arm and stopped him. She shook her head.

“It’s done, Elijah. Finn has… he has made his choice and it isn’t me. He never loved me, anyway.”

“That’s not true, Riah.”

“Isn’t it? Even after we married, we were never close. He was never the person that I would have gone too given a choice in the matter. Why should I have believed for an instant that the same wouldn’t be true for him? He never loved me and I was never in love with him.”

“If he doesn’t love you, then he’s a bigger fool than I thought,” Elijah said. “I should kill him for making you cry like this.”

“You can’t kill him, Elijah. That’s the whole point of Esther’s spell, after all.”

“For you, I would find a way.”

“Enough, Elijah. Neither of us truly wishes for Finn’s death. The satisfaction would last but a moment compared to the pain and regret.” She shook her head again. “Oh, let him have love, then. At least one of us should.”

“You don’t have one, then?” Elijah asked.

Riah turned to face him. She tried to read his expression, but he had gotten very good at hiding his feelings from her. “I never said that. Simply that he ought to pursue it. Otherwise, the chance may be lost forever.”

“Are you certain that your chance has been lost?”

“Oh, stop dancing around the issue and kiss me, Elijah.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. He heaved Riah into his lap and forced his lips against her. Oh, how she loved the feel of his hand on her waist, in her hair, anywhere. Every touch was electric. For 100 years, they had avoided one another. They were almost never alone for the very fear that this would be the outcome.Elijah’s incredible control was finally broken. He tangled his hand in her hair and pulled back enough to expose her neck. She moaned into his mouth inadvertently. She had longed to feel this touch from him for so long. Elijah’s lips didn’t leave hers for a second. He pushed her skirts away, ghosting his fingers along her legs. He was quick to move her from the couch. Her shoulders hit the wall with a satisfying sound and a soft jolt of pain. He grabbed her leg and put it around his waist, aching to close the distance. 

“Azariah, you have no idea what you do to me,” he spoke to her between kisses, pressing his lips along her clavicle. Each one sent more heat between her legs.

Riah caught his face in her hands, bringing him back to her mouth. The feeling of his tongue in her mouth was improper at best and lewd and lustful at worst. She couldn’t have possibly cared less. She needed more of him. He was stoking a fire in her that she had though was all but gone. She pressed her body against his but it still wasn’t nearly close enough. Elijah hiked her skirts up between their bodies. She could feel the pressure of his erection against her. He unlaced his trousers and let them fall to the floor. He pulled his cock free and pressed the tip against Riah’s folds.

“So wet for me already,” he growled as he slid in.

Azariah’s nails dug into his shoulders, ripping cloth and skin alike. She moaned softly in his ear. He stretched her perfectly. She had never been filled like this before. Elijah rested his forehead against her shoulder, panting lightly. Without warning, he started moving, earning him another moan from Riah. He lifted her other leg around him, giving him better access to her core. He bucked wildly into her, undone by the feeling of her finally surrounding him. His self control and patience were finally lost. Elijah pounded into her, hard enough that Riah was worried they might break the wall. The growing pressure in her stomach was so divine that she couldn't bring it on herself to care for more than a fleeting second.

He buried his head in the crook of her neck, biting down on her sensitive skin to prevent too many noises. In a house of vampires, they needed to be as quiet as possible. It was a lesson they had learned because of Rebekah and Alexander. The movement of Elijah’s hips against her made Riah certain that she was going to lose control at any moment. He reached down through her skirts and brushed his thumb against her clit in quick, circular motions.

Maybe it was the danger of getting caught that gave a heightened sense of pleasure. Maybe it was just because she had been aching for this moment for so long. 

“I wish this moment to never end,” RIah said breathily, “and for us to never part again,”

Elijah kissed her roughly, passionately. “I wish it, too. I love you, Azariah. I love you.”

As the words left his lips, Riah could feel herself go over the edge. She moaned his name as quietly as she could. Her walls clenched around him. He kept them both quiet with his mouth against hers. He gave a few more uneven thrusts as he too came undone in her embrace.

He carefully brought Azariah to the bed. With a gentle touch, he untied her corset and helped her out of her dress. She was left in just her chemise. He tossed his own jacket and tunic, ruined by her earlier grip, to the floor. Riah held out her arms as an invitation to lay with her. Elijah was more than willing. He rested his head against her chest. She ran her fingers through his hair. His breathing slowed and he was asleep. Riah leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to his temple.

“I love you, Elijah Mikaelson,” she whispered, “more than you will ever know.”

****

* * *

****

For one month, Elijah and Riah were together in bliss. As long as she had him, she could forget everything else. She didn’t care about Ayana’s 100 year old predictions. She didn’t care about Sage. From time to time, Elijah would feel the guilt of what they were doing. He would see the ring Riah still wore or he would mention Finn by accident and it would overtake him. Finn was his brother and yet Elijah was indulging himself in the pleasures of his wife time and time again. Riah would remind him of Sage and bring him back to bed with her. They kept it a secret for as long as they could. Neither of them knew why for sure, but it seemed wrong to tell others. It would make everything much more real than it seemed. Riah was still partially convinced that this was all a dream. She didn’t want to wake up from it ever. She wanted Elijah and she wanted to be with him forever.

She should have known better.

Riah joined Elijah in his chambers that night. He kept his arms tight around her waist, his face buried in her hair. He refused to let her go for even a second. She could still remember the feel of his breath against her skin as she fell into a deep sleep. She had barely even felt the dagger enter her back.

When she arose from that first enchanted slumber, all she could smell was blood. It permeated through the air and she was hungry like she had only been when she was first turned. 

“-over me!” she heard Klaus yell. 

Azariah ran towards his voice, fearing the worst. She didn’t know how she was awake now, but she had to check and make sure that the rest of her family was safe. She had to know if they needed her. Something had allowed them to die. 

She ran to Rebekah’s rooms. Alexander was hanging dead from the walls, his sword deeply embedded in his chest. Riah covered her nose. That was where the smell was coming from. Klaus had wiped out the Five. Klaus was holding Rebekah by the shoulders, shaking her like a doll. Rebekah was sobbing, insisting that it was nothing. She had been promised nothing. Riah pried Klaus off of her, tossing him to the other side of the room. They bared their fangs at one another.

“Leave her alone!” Riah spat. “She’s a child!”

“She’s an idiot that almost got us all killed!”

“And she will learn! Leave! Now.”

Klaus shot one last glare at the two of them. Riah did her best to comfort Rebekah, but as she looked around, all she could see was blood.

Blood and death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yes. Elijah and Riah were in an on again off again relationship because of Sage.


	24. Chapter 24

Azariah walked towards the old witches’ house. It felt… wrong for her to be there. It was the sight of great horrors to the witches. Azariah, as an Original Vampire, stood for everything that the witches hated. The only reason that she was there now and wasn’t dead was because they allowed it. That much was certain. She shivered. She’d long since forgotten what it felt like to be connected to the earth yet a part of her still missed it. She took a deep breath before heading towards Stefan, Elijah, and Alaric.

“The sacrifice is completed in stages as the full moon sets,” Elijah explained. “First, the werewolf is killed, then the vampire. Finally, the doppelganger. Once Elena dies, the curse will be broken. Klaus will be a hybrid.”

“So when do we attack?” Alaric asked.

“Elena’s death will activate his dormant werewolf side. He’ll be vulnerable during the transformation. That’s when Bonnie comes in.”

“And you’re sure Bonnie can survive this?” Stefan crossed his arms.

“If she can deliver Klaus to the brink of death, I’ll finish the job myself.”

Elijah’s words were cold and his resolve was strong. He had been dreaming of this moment for such a long time. He was craving his brother’s death as revenge. Riah was more than happy to help him reach that goal. If everyone here did their part, this plan would be executed flawlessly. Klaus thought Bonnie was dead and he didn’t know that Elijah and Azariah were conscious. Everything was in place to finally get Klaus out of their lives forever. She took Elijah’s hand. He smiled down at her softly, but his determination never left his eyes. If he lost it, he would hesitate. Klaus would take advantage of that hesitation. They would all be dead. Riah wouldn’t let that happen. Even if Elijah faltered, she would rip Klaus’s heart out herself. Klaus _needed_ to die. Her family was lost. She hoped that one day she might see them again. He’d taken that away.

Stefan stepped away to answer a call from Damon. Riah started pacing. The moon was rising rapidly. Or maybe it just felt like it was. They were really going through with this. They were really going to kill Klaus in a few hours. Now that it was so near, she did her best to continue to see him as Klaus and not as Nik, the sweet boy that she used to play with. Stefan looked at Alaric worriedly. Azariah stopped walking. He hung up the phone and looked between the three of them.

“He took Jenna.”

Silence followed Stefan’s words as the true gravity of the situation hit them all. Alaric ran a hand across his face. She was the vampire sacrifice. Damon had interrupted the ritual and Klaus… he did love a certain level of symmetry, didn’t he? Elijah put an arm around Riah’s waist and brought her to his side. He was clenching his jaw. They hadn’t known Jenna for very long and Riah had tried to kill her once (she apologised, but Jenna’d been compelled to forget already) but it was still unexpected. Riah thought it would have been Stefan Klaus would have gone for, or even Damon himself. That would have hurt him much more than Jenna would. There had to be a reason behind it. Right?

Alaric shook his head. “I… I’ve gotta tell Jeremy. That poor kid… he… we...”

He scoffed and walked into the house. Riah watched him go with pity in her face. She knew all too well the pain of losing a loved one. Stefan shook his head.

“No. No way. We’re not letting him kill Jenna,” he said.

“We don’t have a choice, Stefan,” Riah said. “There has to be a vampire sacrifice and she’s a vampire now. Unless you want Bonnie to die.”

“Of course I don’t want Bonnie to die! That’s why I’m going to offer myself up as the sacrifice.”

“I don’t think-”

“It’s the only way.”

Riah thought about what she had seen in his journal. She thought about Rebekah’s necklace dangling from Elena’s neck. Klaus knew Stefan. He had to. There was no way that Rebekah and Klaus would have been apart, not that soon after New Orleans. Stefan didn’t remember it for a reason. She couldn’t believe that Klaus would take him as the sacrifice if he hadn’t killed him back then.

Bonnie came outside before Azariah could voice her concerns. Stefan did his best to explain the situation to her. She looked shocked and appalled by Klaus’s actions. They couldn’t comprehend yet just how evil Klaus actually was. Riah didn’t expect them to. They were just children. They didn’t need to know everything about the world yet. They shouldn’t have even really been going through this. They shouldn’t have been dragged into family drama that was a thousand years old.

“Why did he take Jenna?” Bonnie asked.

“A punishment for meddling,” Riah sighed, “Klaus has never been one to forgive and forget when there’s a personal slight against him.”

“A personal slight? What the hell did Jenna do to him?”

“It was Damon. Klaus was going to use Tyler and Caroline. But Damon rescued them,” Stefan explained.

“Then we need to go. Now. Before Jenna's been sacrificed. I can kill Klaus myself.”

“Bonnie...If you use that much power, you'll be dead. We've already been through this. It's not an option.”

“Neither is letting Jenna die.”

“Well, Stefan would agree with you.” Elijah crossed his arms.

Stefan walked over to Bonnie. He met her eyes easily. Confidently. “We're going to offer another vampire. One that he'll want more. Me.”

Riah sighed. She still wasn’t sure about that. Not after seeing that page in his journal. Klaus only went through the effort of erasing memories when he cared about the person. Otherwise he’d just kill them. There was a reason he had gone for Jenna instead. Riah just couldn’t wrap her head around what it was.

Stefan walked away. Riah watched him go. Bonnie looked up at the moon. “It’s almost time,” she said. “I’ll do the locator spell and find them.”

“Please, do.” Riah said. She shook her head and looked at Elijah. “We can’t risk this, Elijah. There’s no guarantee that Klaus will take Stefan and even if he does, he might start to suspect something. I don’t like it.”

“We can’t stop them. Everything is going to be fine, Azariah. We will beat him. We have to, for Rebekah. And Kol. Finn. All of them lost because of _him._ ” He took her hands in his. “I won’t fail.”

She believed him. She really did. If anyone was going to beat Klaus once and for all, it was Elijah. His family had always meant everything to him. He wanted to kill Mikael for years for what he had done to Klaus. He wanted to kill Klaus now for the very same thing. She kissed his knuckles. She trusted him to do this. Bonnie came back a few moments later. She knew where they were. Steven’s Quarry. It wasn’t too far from where they were now. Azariah looked over at Stefan. It was time. They needed to leave soon. Elijah and Riah walked over to him. He looked at the Originals a little suspiciously. She didn’t expect for him to fully trust them. Not since he knew that Klaus was Elijah’s brother. 

“Bonnie did the locator spell. They're at Steven's Quarry.” Elijah told him.

“I'll head over there first and you'll follow with Bonnie when it's time.”

“You’re determined, then?” Riah asked. Stefan nodded. “All right then. Remember, just as the moon hits its final phase.”

“He can’t know that she’s alive,” Elijah said. Stefan nodded and started to walk away. “You’re very honourable.”

Stefan walked back to Elijah. “Are you? Either of you? Because this whole plan is, erm, it's contingent upon your honor.”

“I won’t fail you.”

“Neither of us will. One way or another, Klaus is going to die.”

“Klaus is your brother, Elijah. I know I've wanted to kill my brother a thousand times. I've never been able to.”

“Well, Klaus was not my only brother. I had siblings; parents. I had a family. Over the centuries, Klaus hunted them down one by one and he took them from me. He scattered them across the seas where their bodies could not be found.”

“He took away my only chance to ever see them again. He abused and manipulated me for centuries. He’s dead.”

“You two want revenge.” Stefan looked at them with a new understanding.

“Sometimes there's honor in revenge, Stefan. We won't fail you.”

“Please end this.”

Stefan left. In just a few hours, Klaus would be dead. Finally. A weight would finally be lifted from her chest. For so long she’d lived under the thumb of other people. Her father. Mikael. Klaus. She wasn’t going to live in fear any more. She couldn’t bear it. She leaned her head against Elijah’s shoulder. She needed to know that he was going to be okay after this. Even if it took him a hundred years, or even a thousand years, she would be there for him. If he wasn’t strong enough, she would finish it for him because that was what he needed from her. He needed her to be strong enough for the both of them.

She made Elijah look at her. She rested her hands against either side of his face, gently brushing her thumbs across his cheekbones. She could see it there. The hesitation. The thought that maybe, just maybe, this wasn’t the honourable thing. He had spent most of his life convinced that he could find the good in Klaus. Even now, there was a part of Elijah that wanted to believe that his little brother could still be saved. 

She smiled softly up at him, leaning forward to press a kiss to his lips. Their lips brushed together delicately, a kiss so soft that she could just barely take it all in. It was just long enough that she could get a taste of him, feel his fingertips ghost along her jawline, inhale enough air to keep them both still. The world around them melted as she tried to pour everything into this one kiss. A lingering kiss that she hoped would tell him everything that her words couldn’t. Every nerve on her body came alive with those simple touches because they were what she always ached for when she was near him. Elijah’s fingers intertwined with hers as he pulled away, a barely audible gasp of air escaping his lips.

“Whatever happens tonight, I want your word that you’ll come back to me,” she whispered. These were words that she didn’t want to be overheard. She didn’t want others to see this one vulnerability that she had. Her one true weakness. “If we’re separated, if Klaus somehow survives, I want to see you after it’s all over. I need your word that we’ll see each other again.”

Elijah turned his head slightly to the side, smiling down at her affectionately. He kissed her hand once more. “You have my word, Azariah, that we will see each other again. My mistake was not searching for you 500 years ago. I won’t make the same one again.” He looked at the moon. “We need to go. I’ll gather the others.”

She nodded and held onto his hand until the last second. His fingers slipped through hers and she watched him enter the old witches’ house. She stared up at the moon, already coming down. The werewolf would be dead by now. Riah wondered if Stefan had made it in time. He’d had plenty of time to get there. Maybe she’d been wrong and Klaus really had taken Stefan as the sacrifice. Elena and Jenna would watch as Stefan was staked through the heart. Jenna would watch as Elena was drained of her blood. Would her new vampire emotions be able to take it or would she just turn them off when she saw her niece dead on the rocks? There were many questions that were going to be answered sooner, rather than later.

After a few moments, Elijah reemerged with Alaric, Bonnie, and Damon behind him. They all walked towards the door, stepping through easily until Alaric tried. He hit an invisible barrier. He pressed his hand against open air.

“Bonnie! What is this?” Alaric asked incredulously.

She stopped and looked back at him, shaking her head softly. “I can’t put anyone else at risk.”

“I can’t stay here with Jenna out there!”

“I’m sorry.”

“You can’t do this! Damon!”

“Sorry, buddy, but she’s right.”

Elijah, Bonnie, Azariah, and Damon walked away, ignoring Alaric’s yells of protest. They made their way to Steven’s Quarry. The vampire sacrifice was done by now. Riah looked out. Stefan was lying on the ground with a stake in his back, but he wasn’t dead. Jenna, instead, was on the rocks, her blood dripping into the ceremonial bowl. Klaus extended his hand to Elena. She stood and walked confidently over to him. She walked right by his arm and to Greta. She was determined to show no fear. Her heart was at a steady pace. Her rage was greater than her fears. Klaus grabbed Elena’s face, forcing her to look him in the eyes. He had his signature smirk on his face. He was getting what he wanted after all this time. 

Klaus sank his fangs into Elena’s neck. Even from their hidden position, Riah could smell the blood in the air. Klaus kept a tight grip on Elena. The only sounds came from the fire in front of him and his own grunts and groans as he drank. Her eyes fluttered shut and her heart slowed as it struggled to pump what little blood remained in her. When it was finally done and she was dead, Klaus tossed her away as if she was a toy he no longer wished to play with. Greta started chanting louder, holding her hands to the moon. Klaus closed his eyes and extended his arms in the air, ready for his transformation. The flames died down and it was almost complete darkness.

Then Riah heard it. The sickening crack of bones. The sounds of his insides rearranging themselves as he was turned into a wolf. He was transforming into the very beast that she had been raised to fear and hate. His eyes opened, revealing their glowing amber colour.

Bonnie sprung into action. The flames rose again. Greta was startled. Bonnie started chanting. Before Greta could retaliate, Damon had snapped her neck. Elijah stopped Riah from leaving just yet. They needed to wait for their moment. Klaus screamed as his body contorted and weakened. Riah stepped away from Elijah’s grip and started walking towards Klaus. She needed to see this for herself. She stopped by Stefan and ripped the stake from his back, not bothering to see if he was still alive after it. Instead, she threw the chunk of wood at Klaus, effectively knocking him to the ground. The wound didn’t heal quickly. Bonnie’s magic was taking away his regeneration. Her spell caused the trees to fall around them.

“Riah?!” he said incredulously. “Help me, sister! Please!” Elijah walked behind her. “Elijah, Riah, please. Please, help me.”

“Oh, how the mighty have fallen,” Riah said. “You look better when you’re begging.”

Elijah plunged his arm through Klaus’s chest. “In the name of our family, Niklaus,” Elijah twisted his arm and Klaus yowled in pain.

_”I didn’t bury them at sea!”_

Klaus’s yell echoed in Riah’s ear. She and Elijah shared a glance. Was it the last desperate attempt of a dying man to save his life or was it true? Could their family still be alive?

“What?” Elijah growled.

“Their bodies are safe. If you kill me, you'll never find them.”

“Don't listen to him!” Stefan yelled.

“Elijah. I can take you to them. I give you my word...brother. Sister, please,” Klaus pleaded.

“Don’t call me that. Ever. Your word means nothing to me.” She looked at Elijah again. There was the hesitation, but this time, it was for his family possibly trapped somewhere. “This is your choice, Elijah. Remember that we will never have this chance again. You have to decide.”

“Do it and I'll take you all out,” Bonnie warned.

“You aren’t strong enough to kill three Originals, Bonnie. You’ll die,” Riah hissed.

“I don't care.”

Elijah looked between them all, his gaze finally settling on his brother. “I'm sorry.”

The remorse in his voice was real. He pulled his hand from Klaus’s chest. Riah and Elijah grabbed either side of him and ran. With the two of them, they were faster than any spell that Bonnie could cast and they were gone. They fled until they were certain that there was no way they could be found. Riah tossed Klaus to the ground and let him finish his transformation. She glanced at Elijah. He was… conflicted, to say the least. She took his hand. Everything would be okay. It had to be. They had each other and that was all they really needed. They would find the others and leave Klaus for good. They’d leave Mystic Falls behind. Everything would be okay.

****

* * *

****

For two days, they followed Klaus’s rampage. They cleaned up his bodies and did whatever they could to make sure that he wasn’t drawing too much attention to any of them. Azariah hated every second of it.

“Run from a man for 500 years and you end up picking up after him,” she grumbled.

“I know this isn’t easy, Riah, but just think - soon, you’ll have Rebekah to talk to. You know, she missed you terribly, too. She didn’t even get a note,” Elijah joked.

“I was in a bit of a rush.” She playfully punched his shoulder. “If Klaus was even telling the truth, that is.”

“If there’s even a chance that he is, we have to take it. I have to have hope that they’re not truly lost.”

“I know. I don’t blame you. I just hate that we’re acting under his whim again.”

“Not too much longer, I promise.”

“You can’t promise me that, Elijah. Not this time.”

They stopped when they saw skin instead of fur in front of them. Elijah dropped the pile of clothes he’d been carrying on top of Klaus. He turned and looked at them, a smug smile on his face. Klaus stood. Riah kept pointed eye contact, glaring at him.

“You've been busy,” Elijah sighed.

“That was amazing. How long has it been?”

“Almost 2 days. Full moon came and went. You remained a wolf.”

Klaus started to get dressed. “I can change at will, then. It's good to know. I remember every single kill.”

“Yes. We’ve had to clean up after you along the way.”

“Ah, Azariah. Come, have you no love for your abandoned brother?” he held out his arms.

“You’re not my family, Klaus. Now, you’ve had your fun. We have a deal.”

“That's right. Now, what was it again? Oh, yeah. Wait. I remember. That's it. You wish to be reunited with our family.”

“You gave me your word, Niklaus.” Elijah’s voice was cold. He was done with Klaus’s games.

“What kind of brother would break his bond? Even though you did try to kill me. And Riah here is insistent that I am _not_ in fact her brother.”

“I could have killed you, Klaus. But I didn't.”

Klaus put on his jacket. “And now no one can, not even you. Relax, Elijah. All is forgiven.”

“Where are they?”

“You need to lighten up. I'll bring you to them soon enough.”

Azariah walked forward. She stood in front of Klaus with no fear. “Now, Niklaus. You will bring us to them _now_. We’re not waiting around for you any longer. You made a deal. We kept our end and let you keep your life. Keep yours.”

“There’s that fire. Oh, how I’ve missed you, Azzie.”

It was too long to get back to the apartment. Klaus wanted to lead them on and drag them on a wild goose chase for as long as he could. His games hadn’t changed much, then. Elijah and Azariah walked closely behind him. She didn’t like this. She didn’t trust him. She just had to trust that Elijah knew what he was doing. She did trust that he knew what he was doing. Just being around Klaus reminded her of how awful those last few decades had been. He lorded over Elijah and Azariah with the fact that he wasn’t reviving Finn _for them_. He was giving them time to be together free of guilt while also making sure that they knew exactly who was allowing it to happen, as if he had any control over it. He loved to remind Azariah that she was unfaithful. Disloyal. Other things that were designed to break her heart. All of it to keep her close to him because in the end, her family were the only ones who cared about her.

Klaus opened the door to the apartment. Elijah and Riah followed behind him.

“Klaus, you're back.” Katerina walked from around a corner, Stefan in tow. “Look who decided to come for a visit.”

Klaus smiled like he was seeing an old friend. “You just keep popping up, don't you?”

“I need your help… for my brother.”

“Well, whatever it is, it's gonna have to wait a tick. You see, I have an obligation to my brother and my… Azariah that requires my immediate attention.”

She glared at him again. He shrugged. He hadn’t called her his sister.

“You understand how important family is, or you wouldn't be here,” Elijah said. “My brother gave me his word that he would reunite me with my own.”

“And so I shall.”

Klaus was quick to dagger Elijah. He let his brother fall to the floor with a thud. Azariah barely had time to process it. She didn’t know whether she needed to run or rip the dagger from Elijah’s body. Every nerve was telling her to leave. _Leave, leave, leave, save yourself_. She listened. She’d come back for him, but she needed to get away. Klaus appeared in front of her. He was faster now. Stronger, too. He grabbed the back of Riah’s neck and plunged the dagger into her heart.

“Welcome back, _sister_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so her worst fears realised, Azariah drifted into a deep magical slumber, never to awaken again. Until someone takes the dagger out of her chest. Then she'll be fine in like, four hours or whatever.


	25. Chapter 25

The strange thing about coming back to life from desiccation is that it isn’t instant. It starts with feeling returning slowly as their heart struggles to pump blood through dried and flattened veins. It’s excruciating for a moment as it works and feeling returns to fingers and toes, spreading throughout the body. The mind comes back next, but they’re still stuck in their own body. They can hear everything happening around them but they can’t move. 

When Azariah heard Elijah and Klaus fighting with one another, she was certain that it had been centuries since they’d been awake. A punishment for what they had done to him. The sound of a heart falling to the floor. Elijah’s anger at his brother. She could feel all of it. She willed her body to wake up faster. She felt her coffin rattle. Her head snapped to the side. She gasped for air and sat up. Klaus was against the edge of the coffin, Elijah’s hand around his neck. They both looked shocked to see her. Riah pushed herself out of the coffin. Klaus used the distraction to try and get the upperhand on Elijah. Riah reacted quickly, kicking his knee and knocking him to the ground. She pulled him back up and threw him against one of the other coffins. Klaus slipped out of her grasp and opened one of the others.

He pulled the dagger from Kol’s chest and waved it menacingly at them. “Well, well, well, let’s see how well the two of you do when you’re separated. I’ve seen Elijah without Azariah. Shall we see _you_ without _him_ this time? What was it again, 500 years?”

“Do it. I dare you,” Riah said. “Then you’ll have me and Kol to deal with. How do you think he’s going to feel about you now? 100 years, was it? Or maybe even Finn can be undaggered now, since you’re offering.”

Klaus looked down at his younger brother. He lowered the dagger and smirked. Azariah and Elijah didn’t let their guards down. They had learned their lessons. Klaus walked away towards a table on the other side of the room. Riah watched him suspiciously. 

“Mikael is dead.” 

The words rang out. Her eyes widened. Dead? No. That couldn’t be possible. Mikael had been terrorising them all since they had become vampires. Azariah had used Klaus’s fear of Mikael to her advantage more than once. She took a step back from Klaus. Mikael couldn’t be dead just like that, could he? 

“What did you say?” Elijah asked incredulously.

“I killed him. With his own weapon. He's gone Elijah. Forever.”

Elijah’s anger resurfaced. Klaus was smiling smugly again. Riah looked between all of the coffins in the room.

“Why do our family remain in these coffins? Finn for over 900 years, Kol for over a century,” Elijah scoffed.

“Because of Stefan Salvatore,” Klaus growled. “He holds the one thing keeping me from freeing them. There are things that you do not know about our past. Our mother's death. Things I never wanted you to know but I'm ready to tell you now. I only ask that you remember the oath of loyalty you once swore to me.” Klaus walked to Riah, reaching out to touch her. She stepped away. “I know we’ve had our differences, Azariah, but I need your trust.”

“You don’t have it.” She said quietly. She looked at Elijah. “But I trust him.”

Klaus went to the table, setting the dagger aside while he opened a small urn. White ash. He dipped the dagger in and walked to Kol. Elijah stopped him.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Always and forever,” Klaus said, sticking the dagger in Kol’s chest again. “I need you both by my side. Be my brother. My sister, again. Help me destroy family and I promise you both that our family will be whole again.” Klaus closed the lid.

“Then you need to tell me the truth, Niklaus, about everything.”

And he did. He told them everything. He killed Esther and framed Mikael. Stefan had the coffin now. It was something worse than Mikael. As long as that coffin wasn’t in his possession, they weren’t safe. They couldn’t be. Esther had been sabotaging him since the curse had been lifted. Stefan was lording it against him. Elijah sat and took the news in stride. Azariah… she already knew that Mikael hadn’t killed Esther. He’d told her himself, almost 100 years ago.

_**1918** _

Riah took a sip of her drink. She felt safe in the knowledge that Klaus and the others were still in New Orleans. That was the only reason she had really come back to the states. She was starting to feel her loneliness weighing on her. She didn’t trust any vampires that she found. She knew that most of them had something to do with Klaus or the Original family in some way. Still, she… a part of her _wanted_ them to find her again. She missed her family. She missed Elijah. There was no way that she could possibly go back to them. Klaus would just stick her in a box as punishment and none of them would do anything to help her. It was the power that he held over his family. He kept their fear of Mikael as a weapon.

She shook her head. She was in New York, anyway. It was miles away from New Orleans. It wasn’t like she had any plans to actually _go_ there and see them. There wasn’t a chance that she’d even risk it. She was scared. Someone sat next to her. She rolled her eyes, prepared to send whoever it was packing. She looked over and saw Mikael. Riah stood and tried to run but he pulled her back into her stool.

“Now, now, is that anyway to greet me after so long?” he asked. “Where’s Niklaus?”

“I’m not telling you anything,” she growled.

She hated Klaus, that much was certain. She hated Mikael more. She could feel the sting of her cheek and the pain in her head after he had stopped her from going after Erik. She had hated him from that moment onward. Everything else was just more fuel to the fire. She didn’t care if he killed her, either. It couldn’t be worse than living on her own for the rest of eternity.

“Funny that you would still protect him after all this time. I know you’ve been running from him, Azariah. Which means that you know _exactly_ where he is.”

“Why would I help you kill one of us? If you think I’ll tell you anything, after everything you’ve done to terrorise us, after what you did to _your own wife/i >-”_

“I never touched her!” Mikael spat, slamming his hand against the bar. “Niklaus killed her. He blamed me so you all would follow him. Abandon me.”

She looked at him incredulously. No. No! There… Klaus wouldn’t have… even after… well, she supposed it was possible. Not probable, but possible. Since it was coming from Mikael there was no way that she could trust him. He had been trying to kill her practically since the day she’d died. He’d already done it once. There was nothing to stop him from doing it again.

“Why should I believe you?”

Mikael smiled. It didn’t fit his features. “You always were the smart one. You shouldn’t. After all, I’ve been chasing you for centuries. So let’s make a deal.”

“I don’t-”

“I won’t kill Elijah. Or Rebekah, Kol, Finn… you can take them all for yourself. I only want Klaus.” Mikael set the ornately carved White Oak stake on the bar. She glanced down at it and gulped. The one weapon that could kill an Original vampire was sitting in front of her. She could grab it. She could kill Mikael with it right now and then take it and kill Klaus, too. It would be just a matter of reaching out. “But only if you tell me where he is.”

She looked down at her drink. Was it a chance she could take? Could she really send Mikael down to the others? She gripped the glass so hard that it shattered in her hand. Mikael didn’t move. She sighed. It didn’t seem like she had any choice. She… she had to save Elijah. Mikael would find them eventually. They weren’t exactly subtle, despite their fears of him. She swallowed hard and gritted her teeth.

“If you cross me, Mikael, I swear-”

“You can kill me yourself, Azariah. Now, where are my children?”

**_2010_ **

Klaus left to attend different business. Probably something with his hybrids. He told them to help themselves to a drink. He’d had plenty of people compelled to help him and be… cooperative with a vampire’s needs. Azariah kicked some of the rubble of his fight with Elijah in frustration. They were under his thumb. _Again._ And she couldn’t leave this time. She wouldn’t. Not while Elijah was there with her. How had they let this happen? She shook her head and sat down heavily in a chair. She held a hand over her face. She should have ripped Klaus’s heart out herself. She could have found the bodies for Elijah. She wanted to kill him. Riah turned her head away.

Elijah tapped her shoulder. She looked at him. He was holding a piece of paper between his fingers. He held it out to her. She unfolded it. She raised her eyebrows and gave it back to him.

“So, Damon woke us up, then.” She shook her head. “And he has a plan. Or wants a plan, to stop Klaus. And he wanted our help.” 

“It would appear so.”

“I would love to see Klaus get what he deserves. But I won’t do anything unless you’ll do it with me.”

Elijah took a deep breath. “We’ll meet with him. See what he has to say. Klaus needs to pay. You’re right.” He looked over at his siblings’ coffins. “One way or another.”

She stood next to him. “Then it seems we have somewhere to be. You think Klaus has anything presentable for me to wear in this damned house?”

She walked by Elijah, gently brushing her hand against his cheek as she passed. She headed upstairs. Klaus really had made this place for them all. It was a mansion. Fully stocked. She went into one of the rooms and found her stuff. Everything that she had left here before she was daggered was carefully arranged. She hated that he had done this at all. Even the hagstone Elijah had given her was carefully placed on a nightstand. The thought of him touching it drove her insane. She ran a finger across the smooth surface.

With a sigh, she changed, tossing her ruined shirt into the trash. It seemed that sticking a dagger through a shirt was a sure fire way to tear a big hole in the center. Since she had come to Mystic Falls, she had lost a lot of her wardrobe. She’d figure it out later. For now, she just needed to change. Even before she’d been daggered for… five months. May. It had been May last time she was awake. It was October now. Five months. God, she was starving and tired. But she didn’t have time for any of that. She came back downstairs. Elijah had changed, too. She walked over to him, pulling the collar of his shirt out from under his jacket.

“Well, someone cleans up nice. Should we grab a bite to eat before we head out? Five months is quite a while to go without blood,” she said.

“That might be a good idea.” He held out his arm to her. “Come on, then.”

****

* * *

****

“Why is it always the woods?” she muttered as she almost tripped over another branch.

Elijah held out his arm to steady her. He ran his hands down her shoulders. “Because there’s less prying ears in the woods.”

“So you say,” she grinned, stopping in front of him. She took the lapels of his jacket and smoothed them down, “but maybe we should test that theory, hm?”

She pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. She could feel Elijah tense under her touch. He wanted her badly. He followed her as she pulled away from the kiss and groaned lightly. Without warning, he drove her back into a tree. His knee came between her legs. Heat rose from her stomach to her chest. She started to take his carefully tucked shirt from beneath his trousers. For a moment, time stopped and it was just the two of them there propped up on that tree. She could just barely taste the blood still on his tongue. Elijah rested his forehead against hers. She rested her hands on his hips to keep him close. He leaned close to her ear.

“As much as I would love nothing more than to take you up on that offer, we have business to attend to. Come on. It’s not much further now.”

She pouted a little as she walked away from him. “You’re no fun.”

He chuckled and followed her. They followed the directions on the note. Damon was already there, standing alone in the clearing. He was on the phone. He glanced over at the two of them. He said a soft goodbye and put the phone in his pocket. He gave his signature insincere smile when they stopped in front of him.

“Azariah. Elijah. My favorite Originals, back from the dead. Clean up nice,” he said, giving them both a once over.

Elijah raised an eyebrow. “You left something in my jacket pocket.” He pulled out the note.

“Oh, yeah. ‘Dear Elijah, let's get together, plot the destruction of your brother. Bring your girlfriend, XOXO’.”

“Signed, Damon Salvatore,” Riah finished.

“Was I right to undagger you both or are we gonna have a problem?”

“We’re here, let's talk.”

“I'll start with an easy question. Any idea what kind of Klaus-killing weapon could be magically sealed in a mystery coffin?”

“Not a clue. But he is _very_ desperate to get it back from your brother,” Riah said. “I take it you have your witch doing whatever she can to open it as we speak.”

“It’s taking a little longer than we hoped,” Damon grimaced. “And since Stefan went a little ‘American Psycho’ on some of Klaus’s hybrids, we’re running out of options.”

“Indeed you are. Tell me, were we your ace in the hole? Are you sure that you can trust us? We are Originals, after all, and I told you we can be a fiercely loyal bunch.”

“ _You_ are only loyal to him,” Damon looked pointedly at Elijah, “and it seems like _he’s_ still pissed at Klaus.”

Elijah moved his head side to side and agreed. “What do you need from us, Damon?”

Damon crossed his arms. Clearly, this wasn’t going quite the way that he had pictured. He had probably expected them to instantly go along with any plan that he had but he didn’t even _have_ a plan. Riah sighed. This was going well, then. She weighed her options. Honestly, they were more likely to get everyone back with Damon’s help than they would by relying on Klaus for anything. She glanced at Elijah. Damon still hadn’t responded to his question. Elijah sighed softly and stuck his hands in his pockets.

This was going about as well as Riah had pictured it. She didn’t trust Damon. She didn’t trust any of the little gang in Mystic Falls. They had betrayed her more than once. Granted, she’d also betrayed them by helping Klaus escape, but she’d learned her lesson from that one. She leaned against a tree.

“You can keep the coffin,” Elijah said finally. “In return, I want your help reviving the rest of my family.”

“Bringing the two of you back was risky enough. Why would I want all six Original vampires in town?” Damon scoffed.

“Finn’s been in a box for 900 years. Klaus took Kol away from his fun for 100. Rebekah was literally stabbed in the back by her brother. Trust me, none of us want to help him,” Riah assured him. “Help us bring the others back and we’ll leave. You can do whatever you want to Klaus.”

“Do we have a deal?” Elijah asked.

Damon looked at Elijah’s outstretched hand. It was the best offer that he had and this wasn’t something that Elijah or Riah were willing to give up on. Whatever was in that other coffin… Riah didn’t care. The Salvatores could have it. Damon eventually agreed to their terms. The three of them came up with a plan. A dinner party of sorts. It was time for them to call for a truce. A fake one, anyone. It would let Damon stall Klaus from their attempts to open the coffin and it would let them all undagger the rest of the Mikaelson family.

It was a plan. They all shook on it. Riah watched Damon walk away from the clearing. She waited until he was out of earshot.

“You don’t trust him, do you?” she asked.

“Of course not. Not anymore than he trusts either of us.”

“Either way we get our family back, right?”

“Right.” He ran his hands down her shoulders and smiled softly. “We need to get back to the house before Klaus gets even more paranoid. Besides, we have a dinner party to plan.”


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I almost post the same chapter twice? Maybe. Did I realise my mistake? Yes.

“Elijah, can you help me with this zipper? It keeps getting stuck,” Azariah said.

Elijah set his book aside and walked over to her. He ran his hands up her sides slowly, pressing kisses to the crook of her neck. It took ages for him to finally reach the zipper. He took his time moving it up along her back. She leaned back into him. He wrapped his arms around her waist. Her back pressed against him. He kissed her neck, her jaw, nibbling at her earlobe. She sighed in contentment. He gently bit her neck again. She turned around in his arms, running her hands through his hair. She kissed him with a soft smile on her face. He held her hungrily. His fingers dug into her hips through her dress. He brushed his tongue along her bottom lip. She was happy to give him entrance. He started to hike up her skirt.

She moaned into his mouth as his fingers dug into her thighs. She was aching for him to be closer. Elijah’s lips were warm and smooth and his hands felt perfect everywhere they touched her. She had just finished getting dressed for this damn party and she wanted nothing more than to have him rip the damned thing off of her. He lifted her onto one of the nightstands. She readily spread her legs to bring him towards her.

The door opened. Azariah growled.

“Go away!” they said simultaneously.

“It’s your dinner party,” Klaus laughed. “But please, don’t stop on my account. Though our guests will be arriving soon, so you may want to keep your pants on.”

He chuckled a little longer before he walked out of the room. Riah jumped down onto the floor. She straightened out Elijah’s hair. “We’re being summoned.”

He smiled. “To be continued.”

“It better be,” she grumbled. “Otherwise I’ll go insane.”

“As long as you don’t go on a killing spree.”

“Is that all it takes? I wish I’d known, I would’ve done that earlier.”

“Behave.” He leaned close to her ear. His breath ghosted against her skin. “Do you remember your part?”

She shivered. “Of course. Let’s get this over with.”

They headed downstairs. Klaus had compelled a whole kitchen staff. It was ridiculous but so very, very him. He always went overboard with all of these types of things. Nothing could change that. The doorbell rang. Elijah left to answer it while Klaus and Riah stood in the dining room, surrounded by the food that he had decided on. Two women dressed in scantily clad outfits stood on either side of the room, waiting for Klaus’s orders. It was extravagant. It was unnecessary but Riah had no desire in arguing with Klaus about… anything. She just didn’t want to talk to him at all, yet there she was. Living in the same house as he was.

Stefan and Damon entered the house. Klaus stood still as Elijah led them to the dining room.

“Damon. Stefan. Elijah tells me, you seek an audience.” Klaus smiled. “Very bold. Let's discuss the terms of our agreement like civilized men, shall we?”

The female servants he’d compelled for the evening pulled chairs away from the table. No one moved. Elijah sighed.

“It's better to indulge him,” he said.

“I didn't come here to eat, Klaus. Fact, I didn't want to come here at all. But I was told I had to cause you would hear us out.” Stefan crossed his arms.

Well, it seemed that this dinner was doomed from the start. Riah knew that Stefan was struggling to get his emotions back on track, but she had thought that he’d still have at least some sense. She hadn’t realised how far he’d fallen. Klaus… Klaus had really done a number on him. Riah looked over at Damon. He shrugged. He couldn’t get his brother under control. This was wonderful.

“Well, we can sit and eat or I can reach down your throats and pull out your insides. The choice is yours.”

Klaus never was one to give an _actual_ choice. Everyone sat down. The servants went around and poured them all wine. Riah leaned back in her chair. She was inbetween Klaus and Elijah. Stefan and Damon were on the other side of the table. Slowly, everyone started eating. Everyone except for Stefan. He had his arms crossed. He had no interest in pleasantries but he was still here. That was better than Riah thought they were going to get. She took Elijah’s hand under the table. This had to work. One of the servants walked over to give Damon some more wine. He thanked her with a smile.

“You lost your appetite,” Klaus said.

“Eat. I thought we agreed that we would leave the grumpy Stefan at home.” Damon nudged Stefan’s shoulder.

Stefan reluctantly took a bite of food.

“That's the spirit. Isn't it nice? Five of us dining together? Such a treat. Is this what you had in mind when you pulled the daggers from these two?”

“Well, I know how they felt about you, so I figured the more, the merrier.” Damon winked at the two of them playfully.

“Well, Elijah and I have had our share of quarrels over the century. But we always make it through. And as for Azariah… she’s always understood the importance of family. We’re working on becoming one again.”

“Kind of like you and Rebekah, right? Where is she, by the way? Last I checked she was still daggered because you were afraid to face her.” Stefan turned his head to the side with a smile.

“If you're referring to the fact that Rebekah knows I killed our mother, I've already come clean to Elijah and Riah.”

A thousand years after the fact. Damon and Stefan argued quietly about fighting with Klaus right now. Stefan really didn’t want to be here. Riah was trusting that it was because Damon hadn’t told Stefan the real plan. He probably hadn’t. Stefan wasn’t nearly smug enough about the whole dinner. He also clearly wasn’t planning on making any deals with Original vampires. Riah really hoped that he didn’t screw this up for them. Young vampires were always so reckless. It was exhausting trying to keep up with them. Riah crossed her legs. Elijah took another sip of wine. Azariah was desperate to change the subject to literally anything else to buy them some more time.

“So, Stefan, where is the lovely Elena tonight?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Ask Damon,” Stefan said.

Elijah and Riah shared a glance while Klaus laughed. “I’m sorry. It’s just the two of you have missed so much. Ah, trouble in paradise.”

“One more word about Elena and this dinner is over.” Stefan clenched his fists.

Klaus smiled. He put a finger over his lips. He wouldn't say anything else. For now, anyway. Riah doubted that he’d be able to keep his mouth shut once the actual negotiating began. Damon set his napkin in his lap and smiled nervously.

“You know what, probably best to keep Elena in the do-not-discuss pile.”

“You’re probably right.” Klaus nodded. “It’s just the allure of the Petrova doppelganger, still so strong. What do you say, brother? Should we tell them about Tatia?”

“Why bring up matters long in the past, Klaus?” Riah said.

“Ah, my apologies, _Azzie._ I forgot how uncomfortable the topic makes you.” He smiled again, gently patting her back. “But given their shared affection for both Elena and Katerina, I think our guests might be curious to learn about the originator of the Petrova line.”

Riah scoffed and crossed her arms. Elijah pulled her hand into his lap with a sympathetic look on his face. Those had been very different times. In those days, Elijah had still been avoiding her because of Finn. The last thing Riah wanted was to relive those memories for even an instant. Elijah had been her closest friend back then. It had always felt like he’d just abandoned her. She understood why, of course, but it hadn't made it any easier to see him every day but never speak. And Tatia… she had been no saint herself. She knew of the effect that she had on the men of the village. She used it to her advantage. Azariah had hated seeing Tatia cling to Niklaus’s arm one moment and run to Elijah the next. She loved to see the men fight over her. Even before she’d married, she’d taken months to pick between those that sought her.

“Well, we’re not going anywhere, Riah. Please, do tell.” Damon took a sip of his wine.

Elijah looked over at Azariah and took a breath. “When our family first settled here, there was a girl named Tatia. She was an exquisite beauty. Every boy of age desired to be her suitor, even though she had a child by another man. And none loved her more than Niklaus.”

“Tatia, however, loved how the men adored her. She enjoyed watching them fight over her so she tried to pit Elijah and Klaus against each other.” Riah’s voice was filled with disdain. “She would carry on with one during the day and try to capture the other’s attention that night.”

“How would she pit them against each other? I thought that you and he-” Stefan began.

“Ah, yes. Riah and Elijah are the star-crossed lovers of the Mikaelson family. See, _she_ is, technically speaking, married to our eldest brother,” Klaus interrupted, “despite her feelings toward Elijah. In the end, Tatia married me.”

“And only after she realised that Elijah had no interest.”

“So what happened to Tatia? I doubt you brought her up just to reminisce.”

“Their mother was a very powerful witch. When her youngest son was killed by the werewolves, she used Tatia’s blood to lace the wine we drank that night. Later, she would be Niklaus’s first kill. She was the one who originally triggered his curse and it was her blood that bound his curse. Symmetry in all things, isn’t that right, Klaus?” He looked away from her with a weak smile. “And her biggest impact was the rift she drove between Elijah and Klaus for quite some time. Klaus even tried to fight him once.”

“Still, we learned the importance of family because of her,” Klaus said.

“Family above all,” Elijah said with a soft smile, locking eyes with Riah. She nodded in agreement.

Klaus clinked all of their glasses together. “Family above all.”

Azriah took another sip of her wine. She hoped that Elijah wasn’t having second thoughts again. As if he was reading her mind, he took her hand and placed a kiss to her knuckles. It was his way of telling her not to worry. He had everything under control. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, as it were. Klaus placed a hand on Azariah’s shoulder. It took all of her willpower to not shove it back to him. She needed to be pleasant. Just for a little while longer. Honestly, now that she knew the others would be back soon, she didn’t care if Klaus lived or died. That was for Famon and Stefan to accomplish. This dinner was her and Elijah’s part. She set her empty glass down and waved away the servant girl that came to refill it. Riah looked over her. Her eyes were glassy and her smile was far too wide. She probably wouldn’t survive the night. Not if Klaus had something to say about it.

Elijah held onto Riah’s hand with both of his, his index finger tracing circles on her skin. He was trying his best to keep her calm. It was working. If Damon hadn’t woken up Elijah and it had just been her, this dinner might’ve already ended. They continued eating all while glaring at each other. Neither side trusted the other. They needed to start moving this along to give themselves a chance to revive the others. They needed to lure one of the servants away, too, to make sure that the other three were at full strength if they were going to stand up to Klaus. Damon and Elijah shared a short glance unnoticed by Stefan and Klaus, both of them too busy despising each other to care. Elijah leaned forward in his chair and folded his hands.

“So, why don’t we move this evening along and discuss the terms of the proposal?” he said.

“That’s very simple,” Damon moved forward. “Klaus gets his coffin back. In exchange, he and the Original extended family leave Mystic Falls forever. Me, Stefan, and Elena live happily ever after. No grudges.”

“The deal sounds fair, brother.”

Klaus smirked and shook his head. “I don’t think you understand. Elena’s doppelganger blood ensures that I will always have more hybrids to fight those that oppose me. I’ll never leave her behind.” Klaus stood up and started to pace. “Let’s say I _do_ leave her here, under your protection, what then? How long before one of you turns her into a vampire? Or worse, how long before she died caught between your feuding? You seem each one of you truly believes that _you’re_ the one that can protect her and that is simply a delusion. Gentlemen, the worst thing for Elena Gilbert is… the two of you.”

No one spoke. The silence overtook the room as Klaus’s words truly hit the others. They knew that he was right. Whenever vampires fought over a human for any reason, there was only one way it could end: with the human’s death. Damon smiled weakly and looked at his brother. Stefan never broke eye contact with Klaus. Azariah could see his steely determination. He had done a surprisingly good job at making it seem like he didn’t care about what happened between Damon and Elena, but his eyes gave him away. Even he knew that Klaus had a point. He couldn’t keep Elena safe forever. That didn’t mean that he was willing to give her to the Original family, either. Azariah didn’t want him to. The last thing the Mikaelsons needed were more of Klaus’s hybrids. He’d use them as well as the daggers to terrorise his family. He was obsessed with power and control.

Klaus looked down smugly at the Salvatore brothers. His words had hit them right where we needed them to. Damon was squirming in his seat.

“I’m going to get some air,” he said softly.

While Damon left, Klaus watched him confidently.

“I’ll deal with this.” Elijah sighed and followed Damon. 

“You know,” Klaus said as he sat down, “all this talk has made me thirsty.” He gestured for one of the girls to come to him. She sat obediently in his lap. “What do you say, Stefan? Can I interest you in a little after-dinner drink?” Klaus bit into the girl’s neck.

“And that’s my cue. Excuse me.” Azariah stood and looked at Niklaus in disgust. He was ridiculously loud when he ate.

Klaus shrugged and kept eating. Riah walked slowly to the room where Damon and Elijah were already pulling daggers from Kol and Rebekah. She walked over to Finn’s coffin and lifted the lid. He was like one of those wax figures in a museum. Perfectly preserved for 900 years. She gently brushed some of his hair to the side. She glanced down at his ring for her, now on her right hand. She had so many regrets. So many things she wished she had never said or done. None of them hurt more than the last thing she had said to Finn. She’d spoken to his body over the years, apologising and asking for forgiveness that he couldn’t give her. He couldn’t even hear her. Elijah walked over to her. She pulled the dagger out, twisting it in her hands.

“The last thing I said to him was how I would kill his girlfriend,” she said quietly. “And then I slept with his brother the same night. Three times.”

Elijah chuckled and nodded. “We’ll have all the time in the world to beg for his forgiveness, but right now we need to get back before Klaus kills Stefan. It’ll take him longer than the others to wake up.”

She gave Finn one last look and whispered an apology to him before she followed Damon and Elijah back to the dining room. Klaus dropped the girl’s body to the ground as the three of them came back in. Blood was dripping from the corners of his mouth. Messy and loud.Just like a toddler. She tossed him a napkin as she sat down. He chuckled and started to wipe away the blood. Stefan was gripping the arms of his chair tightly. Azariah couldn’t tell if it was hunger, anger, or a combination of the two. Damon sat next to his brother. Stefan relaxed slightly. Riah hadn’t been paying attention to whatever they were talking about but clearly it had gotten under Stefan’s skin.

“What do you say, Klaus? It's time for you to put something on the table. We've made our offer, now you counter.” Damon pulled up his chair.

“Okay. I offer Elena's future happiness. You see, what she needs right now is to be rid of you lot. And to fall in love with a human, maybe that nice football player, you know the blond one?”

“Matt Donovan? Really?”

“Yeah, why not? They'll marry, live a long and fruitful life, and pop out a perfect family.”

“And continue the Petrova bloodline.” Stefan scoffed. “Every few hundred years, you'll have a new doppelgänger to drain and never run out of hybrids, right Klaus?”

Klaus smiled again. “Consider it a small return on my investment in her well-being. See, after you hand me back the coffin, I'll ensure her safety for the rest of her natural life. You know it's what's best for her.” He stood and walked to Stefan’s side of the table. “So, what do you say, Stefan, hmm? Do we have a deal?”

Stefan stood and walked to Klaus. Damon looked nervous. Klaus held out his hand to Stefan. Stefan took it and for a moment, Azariah really believed that they might have come to an accord. She should have known better.

“Nice try, Klaus. But no deal.”

Klaus immediately broke his arm. His leg, too. He pushed Stefan’s hand into the fireplace, letting it burn. Damon tried to get to him. Elijah pushed him against a wall, a hand against his neck. Damon looked genuinely surprised that Elijah was interfering. Riah crossed her arms as she walked to Klaus.

“Now, now, Niklaus, let’s not be rash,” she said.

Klaus ignored her. Stefan’s arm was burnt. The smell of his skin was filling the air. “Now, bring me my coffin before I burn him alive.”

“I'll get it,” Damon promised.

“Go with him, brother. You keep him honest. And when you return, I will make good on my promise to you and I will hand over our family.” Azariah started to follow, too. Klaus stopped her. “Not you, Riah. You’re here to keep me honest.”

She nodded. Damon and Elijah left quickly. Klaus pulled Stefan’s arm out of the fire and threw him to the ground. Azariah looked down at him.

“You should just kill me now. I know you’re going to once you get your coffin.”

“You really have given up, haven't you? Where's the fight? Where's the ripper?” Klaus said. 

He pushed Stefan. Before Stefan could push back, Azariah got between them. She opened her mouth to say something, but Elijah and Damon came back into the room. One of the two servants that had left with them came back carrying a tray with a cover over it. Klaus looked at his brother in confusion.

“Elijah...why haven't you left?” he asked.

Elijah smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Where are you manners, brother? We forgot dessert.”

He took the cover off the tray. Two silver daggers. Klaus shook his head. Riah walked over to Elijah and Damon. She felt… triumphant.

“What have you done?”

“What have you done? You see, I've learned not to trust your vulgar promises, Klaus. We're doing this on _my_ terms now.”

Kol came into the room. He stalked towards Klaus.

“Kol.”

“Long time, brother.”

Klaus started to back away. Finn came into the room. He grabbed one of the daggers and stabbed Klaus in the hand. Klaus exclaimed in pain. Riah watched with great joy. She could only imagine how good it felt to do that. She stood back and let the others have their fun. Klaus tried to run away. He almost ran directly into Rebekah. She stabbed him in the heart with a dagger.

“This is for our mother,” she spat.

As she pulled the dagger from his chest, he fell back into Kol’s arms. Kol restrained him easily. Elijah turned to Damon and Stefan.

“You're free to go. This is family business.”

Damon and Stefan didn’t need to be told twice. Azariah took her chance. She kicked Klaus in the stomach. Kol took a few steps back.

“Nice to see you again, Azariah,” Kol said. “Glad you could join in on the fun.” 

He let go of Klaus and walked over to her. They took each other’s hands and nodded. It had been a long time. It was good to see him again, too.

“Azariah!” Rebekah said. She ran and pulled Riah into a hug that she happily returned. “What’s he done now?”

“Nothing he hasn’t done before. But this time, we’re done.”

Rebekah scoffed. “Of course not.” She walked around. “I like what you’ve done with the place.” 

She threw a vase at a painting.

“I wanted it to be for all of us,” Klaus said quietly. “A place we could all call home. A place we could all be a family. None of us would ever have to be alone again.”

“And none of _us_ will be.” Riah crossed her arms and looked down at Klaus. So pathetic now that he had to face what he’d done to them all.

“You’re staying behind.” Finn responded.

“We're leaving you, Nik. Right after I kill that doppelgänger wench, then you will be alone. _Always and forever._ ” Rebekah stood by Azariah.

“If you run, I will hunt all of you down.”

“I always knew that you and Mikael were cut from the same cloth, Niklaus. I’m so glad you’ve finally decided to show the rest of them.”

“ _I'm the hybrid!”_ Klaus yelled. _”I can't be killed! I have nothing to fear from any of you.”_

“You will when we have that coffin.” Elijah promised.

The door behind them opened. Azariah’s eyes widened. No. It couldn’t be. It wasn’t possible. It was… Esther. She was alive. She looked the same as she had when she died. But how was that possible? She wasn’t a vampire. She… how could it be possible? No. She was dead. She walked right over to Klaus. He refused to look at her. He was more scared of her than the rest of them were. Probably for good reason. He had killed her, after all.

“Look at me! Do you know why I'm here?” She asked.

Tears filled Klaus’s eyes. His voice was barely over a whisper. “You’re here to kill me.”

“Niklaus, you are my son and I am here to forgive you. I want us to be a family again.”


	27. **Chapter 27**

Dark hair fell in a small ring at Azariah’s feet as she cut Finn’s hair. He needed it more than anyone else. She ran her hands through a few times just to make sure it was even. It looked good from the back at least. She locked eyes with Finn in the mirror. She immediately look away and shook her head. She set the scissors to the side. Riah brushed some of the loose hair from his shoulders and looked at the ground. She couldn’t meet his eyes, not until she tried to say… something. Anything. She’d left him in a box for most of his life. It was the least that she could do.

“Finn, I’m so sorry. I… I should’ve taken you with me. I should’ve woken you up so much sooner than this and-”

“Azzie, it’s okay,” Finn said. He turned to face her, taking her hands in his own. “You are forgiven.”

“I shouldn’t be. Not after everything I’ve done. Not after what I said to you. I was just… so… angry with you. And not even for Sage! _You_ had the courage to do what I couldn’t. You took the chance with love, _real_ love. I’m sorry.”

Finn stood and hugged her. She was shocked. She certainly hadn’t been expecting any kind of, well, anything from Finn other than a dagger in the back. For him, all of those things were still right in the past. It was like no time had passed at all and yet here he was, hugging her. She wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes. He had always given good hugs. She had been hoping for this day for so long. She wanted Finn’s forgiveness and now she had it. It didn’t feel right. A part of her felt like she didn’t deserve it now.

“And I forgive you for Elijah, too,” Finn said.

Riah stepped away. “I was going to talk to you about that-”

“Be in love, Azzie. You both deserve each other. Go.” He grabbed her shoulders and pushed her towards the door, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “Thank you for the haircut.”

She sent back one last look. Riah had never seen Finn with short hair. It looked good on him. She was glad that he had… given his blessing. It made the worry sort of… evaporate from her chest. She took a deep breath and walked away from the room feeling more like herself than she had in a long, long time. She headed downstairs. It was strange, to say the least, having all of the Mikaelson siblings in one place again. Rebekah had already started to make a name for herself in Mystic Falls and in the modern world in general. Kol was adjusting. He’d always been able to adapt quickly. Finn was probably going to have the most trouble. He was still adjusting to his urges again. It seemed that 900 years of hunger took a toll.

Rebekah walked by Azariah like she was on a mission. Riah watched her leave. Rebekah had a sort of determined-angry look on her face. Riah genuinely feared for whoever was on the receiving end of that face. Kol was lounging on a couch trying to figure out what a cell phone was. Azariah had let him borrow hers. He was so intrigued by technology of the modern age. Azariah sat next to him and huffed. She looked over at Kol. He dropped the phone onto his lap and moved his legs over Azariah’s so he could continue to lounge effectively. 

“Any idea where she's off to in such a rush?” she asked.

Kol shrugged. “Off to kill some girl, I think. I don’t know, I wasn’t really paying attention after she said ‘I’m going to kill’ and didn’t invite me along.”

“Glad to see you haven’t changed with your old age, Kol.”

“And neither have you, Riah.” Kol sat up and tossed her phone back. “I missed you, you know. You left just as I was going to seduce the next town of young people into bed with me. It wasn’t the same without you.”

“I’m sure you managed just fine without me, Kol,” Riah chuckled. “How’s adjusting to the 21st century going for you?”

“Cars. Instant messaging. A strange obsession with how other people see you. And yet it’s still impossible to get a decent bite to eat around here. Mother has forbidden us to kill anyone.”

“And you didn’t try to stop Rebekah from going out to kill someone?”

He shrugged again. “I never said I was going to _follow_ Mother’s rules. Just because she’s back, doesn’t mean that I care. Don’t get me wrong, Riah, I have missed her. But I also lived without her for 1,000 years.”

“Fair enough.”

“Rebekah’s going to kill who?” Elijah stepped down stairs and looked at the two of them. “Elena. If you’ll excuse me.”

He left to follow his little sister, pulling on his jacket as he went. Azariah watched him go. Kol was grinning when she leaned back. She didn’t like that look. It was the look that he got when he was planning something devious. It was never a good sign for anyone it was directed at and he was staring right at her. She narrowed her eyes.

“What are you looking at?” She asked.

“You are still so in love with Elijah. It’s sickening, really. Tell me, since you’ve been reunited, are you… how did Bekah put it… _on_ or _off_?”

Riah tossed a pillow at him. “That’s none of your concern, Kol.”

“Of course it is. I have to make sure that the _noble brother_ has noble intentions with the lady.” He tossed the pillow back at her.

Before it could turn into an all out pillow war, Esther gently called Azariah’s name. She was standing in the doorway, dressed in expensive clothes like all of her children. Her fair blonde hair had been washed and cut, gently brushing against her shoulders. Her hands were folded in front of her chest and she looked at Azariah expectantly.

“I think we should talk, yes?” Esther asked.

“Of course, Esther.”

Riah followed Esther out of the living room and into one of the offices. Like everything else in the house, it was expensive. She could tell that Klaus had made this room with Elijah in mind. She didn’t sit down as Esther did. If she was being honest, Riah didn’t trust her. Niklaus and Rebekah had told her about what Esther did while she was on the Otherside. She’d done whatever it took to make sure that Klaus couldn’t make more hybrids and once he knew what to do, she’d almost shattered the veil in an attempt to have Elena killed. As much as Azariah wanted to believe that all Esther truly wanted was her family, she just couldn’t. The other witch spirits had assured Bonnie and her friends that Esther would kill Klaus. Witches were more loyal than werewolves. They wouldn’t lie about something like that.

Still, Riah knew how important it was to the others that Esther was back, so she kept her mouth shut. Esther hadn’t done anything to harm any of them since she’d been back. Azariah would just have to keep a close eye on her. She wanted Esther back, too. She had always been like Riah’s own mother, especially after her father’s death. It was nice to have her back for a time.

“What would you like to talk about?” Azariah asked.

“I’d like to offer you an apology, Azariah,” Esther began, “for the behaviour of my sons. You were alone for many years because of Niklaus. Your heart suffered for Finn’s actions. Perhaps, if I had allowed you to marry Elijah in the first place, you would have been happier.”

“Esther, even if I’d married Elijah, Klaus _still_ would have terrorised me. I’m not sure if I would have left, but I wouldn’t have been any happier, either.”

“I only hope that you will be able to repair your relationship with them all. There is nothing more important than family.” Esther walked over and hugged Azariah. She hesitantly accepted the embrace. “And I hope you’ll reconsider coming to the ball, Riah.”

“Oh, that’s really more of a… for you and the rest of the family. The Mikaelsons.”

“You are one of the Mikaelsons, Azariah, regardless of if you’re married to Finn or not. You are my child. Please, say you’ll go.”

She exhaled. “I’ll go.”

“Thank you, dear.” Esther smiled. “Now, go, Leave an old woman with her thoughts.”

Azariah left the room still unsure of what it was Esther wanted from her. The more they talked, the more suspicious Azariah got. She was pushing her to make amends _and_ to go to this ball. Riah didn’t like it. She shook her head. She had to be paranoid, right? It had been a long time since she’d been around the mall. She just needed to have a little faith. What was one witch going to do against six- no, Finn would never do anything to hurt Esther- five Original vampires? There wasn’t any reason to fear her or what she _might_ do.

Elijah came back about an hour after a very angry Rebekah did. She was effectively ignoring him. At least for the rest of the night, anyway. He joined Azariah in one of the many bedrooms. She’d staked a claim the first night they’d come back. She was sitting on the small loveseat with a book. Elijah sat next to her and dropped his head into her lap. She set her book on the floor and started to run her fingers through his hair. He sighed and leaned into her touch with his eyes closed.

“So, how’s Elena?” Riah asked with a little bit of amusement in her voice.

“Alive. And willing to give our family a chance here, despite Rebekah and Niklaus’s best efforts,” Elijah said.

“Then we should try to keep the others on their best behaviour. I doubt Finn will give us much trouble, but Kol is always up to something. I could see the gears turning in his head as soon as Esther mentioned the ball yesterday.”

“Have you changed your mind on going?”

“Esther convinced me. Rebekah will probably drag me dress shopping tomorrow.”

“Have fun with that. Mother and I have a meeting with the mayor to discuss our long-term arrangements here in town. We don’t want to cause any trouble.”

“Well, _we_ don’t.” Riah kissed his forehead. “I’m not so sure about everyone else in this house.”

“What do you mean?”

Elijah sat up and looked at her with concern. She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to phrase this. Esther was his mother, after all. Riah wasn’t certain on how to approach the topic of her paranoia. She knew that he would listen to her, but she doubted that he would really understand why she was so hesitant. She knew that if it were one of her family members raised from the dead, she’d want to think no ill will of them. She should have just been celebrating the fact that they were all together gaina. A part of her was happy, but suspicion was built in now. She couldn’t just _trust_ anyone anymore. Not even Esther. Klaus had been so certain that she wanted him dead for a myriad of reasons. So why did she change her mind?

“It’s nothing, really, Elijah,” she said finally.

“Riah, please. Let me ease your mind.”

She met his gaze and let out a breath slowly to build her confidence. She leaned in close to his ear. She couldn’t risk anyone else hearing this. What if she was wrong and they all resented her? She’d have to leave again and that would kill her. What if she was _right_ and Finn heard? He’d tell Esther immediately. Either way, she’d end up in a box again.

“I don’t trust Esther.” She whispered. “It feels like she’s planning something.”

Riah moved away from Elijah, looking at the ground. He was still for a few moments. He placed a finger under her chin and made her look at him. He kissed her gently.

“I hate to admit it, but you are not alone in your suspicions. Mother has asked Elena to see her,” Elijah said. “I saw the note before the invitations were sent out.”

“I love Esther. She has always been like a mother to me. I’m just not sure that she’s turned a new leaf and I’m worried.”

“Don’t be. I won’t let anything happen to our family. Not now, not ever. I will do whatever I have to in order to keep everyone safe.”

“I know you will.”

“Rest now, Azariah. We have a long day ahead of us.”

****

* * *

****

The day of the ball approached far too quickly. Riah had no interest in announcing their presence to the whole town, but Esther insisted and the others (excluding Klaus) seemed to love the idea, so Riah went along with it now for their sake. They had ordered several different suits when they realised that Finn was too tall and Kol was too short to borrow any from Elijah or Klaus. Besides, Azariah made a pretty decent argument for why they would both need their own anyway. As for Riah, she was sitting patiently while someone they were either paying or compelling to help applied a coat of dark nail polish. She raised an eyebrow when Rebekah had suggested it, but it was probably necessary for a ball. She was also the reason Azariah had been decked out in red makeup.

Kol was on the opposite side of the room with a tailor of his own. He straightened out his sleeves and gazed at himself in the mirror. He wasn’t any less vain than Riah remembered. It really seemed like they were all stuck in time. He looked good in a tux. Rebekah was lounging while an attendant took care of her nails. She had her hair pulled into a ponytail. She was doing her best to ignore everyone else around her. Elijah was shining one of his pairs of shoes. Probably the nicer pair that he’d showed her the other day. Finn was watching while one of the tailors hemmed his pants. He’d been daggered before tailors became a really widespread thing so this was probably all very strange to him. The tailor walked away and Finn started to try and tie his bow tie. She took pity on him. Riah walked over and pushed his hands away.

“I’ve truly never seen an old man struggle so much with a bow tie,” she joked.

Finn chuckled. “Can I tell you how much I hate this thing? A modern torture device.”

“Yes, you may. If it were me, I would have gone with a fake one. Just to avoid the hassle.”

“No one told me that was an option.”

“Of course they didn’t. That wouldn’t be nearly as much fun as watching you struggle.” She finished. “And there you go. One perfectly tied bow tie.”

“Thank you, Azzie.”

“Any time.” She sat down and looked up at Elijah. He smiled at her before going back to his shoe.

“Rebekah,” Kol said, “tell me how handsome I am.”

Rebekah inspected her nails. “Oh, Kol, you know I can’t be compelled.”

Finn grinned and looked between his siblings. Azariah chuckled and leaned back on the couch. It was so nice to have them all together again. It had been a long, long time. She had missed them all so much. Rebekah and Kol always teased each other. Kol didn’t even look fazed.

Klaus burst into the room, full of his usual rage. Azariah groaned. She wasn’t looking forward to whatever this was about now. He always seemed to have something that he was mad about. Full of anger, that one.

“You went after Elena?!” he shouted.

Elijah barely looked up, his easy smile shrinking. Of course this was about this. Kol turned to watch the drama unfold. Rebekah let out a heavy sigh.

“Here we go,” she groaned.

“Do you _want_ another dagger in your heart?!”

“Again, with the dagger threats. Don’t you have any other tricks?” Kol shook his head, putting his hand on his hip.

“Oh, go back to staring at yourself.”

“And who are you, my father?”

“No.” Klaus rounded on Kol, readjusting his anger. “But you’re in my house.”

“Then maybe we should take this outside.”

Kol and Klaus were sizing each other up. Azariah stood up. She didn’t want there to be a fight today. She was already stressed out enough because of the ball and the last thing she needed was for Kol and Klaus to be throwing each other through walls. Elijah took her hand and stopped her from going after them. Rebekah was sitting smuggly. Finn’s smile was gone. Klaus had the uncanny ability to suck the fun out the room. And he called Finn a buzz kill.

“Enough!” Esther stepped into the room. She looked at all of her children and settled her gaze on Klaus. “Niklaus. Come.”

He followed her like a child being scolded. Kol was grinning the way that only a little sibling can when they know that they won’t be getting in trouble. The tension left the room with Klaus. Kol straightened out his tailcoat and walked away. He was either going to eavesdrop on Klaus to hear Esther’s lecture or he was going to find someone to eat. Rebekah had become bored with staring at her nails and left the room. It was just Elijah, Finn, and Azariah. The tension came back just as quickly as it had left. Maybe that was just Azariah’s… guilt? No, that didn’t feel quite right. It wasn’t wrong either. Just hard to describe.

Finn tapped his tailor on the shoulder. They started to walk away. Finn gave Riah a nudge as he left with a smirk. She shot him a look. Her ex-husband was a surprisingly good wingman and she didn’t know what to think about that. Elijah set his shoe down.

“Ah, family. A gift, isn’t it?” she joked.

“Admit it. You’re loving every second of it.”

“Well, maybe not Klaus threatening us with daggers again, but up until that point, yes, I was enjoying it thoroughly.” 

He walked over to her and put his hands on her hips, bringing her closer. She grinned and leaned back a little. He pulled her in for a kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and moved into it. She moved away.

“I have to finish getting ready. I’ve been putting it off for too long. You should, too,” she said. “Guests are going to start arriving in an hour or so.”

He nodded. She kissed his cheek and untangled herself from his arms. She headed upstairs to her room. There were a couple of dresses laid out for her with a note from Rebekah.

_Riah,_

_I knew you’d put it off so I chose two for you, just to make your life a little easier._

_xo, Rebekah_

Azariah chuckled and set the note aside. She picked up both dresses and walked to the full length mirror. One was a deep, wine red with silver and black accents. It was a floor length asymmetrical skirt, sleeveless, and it sported a Grecian neckline. The second was a fully red dress, the accents coming in the form of adornments of lace and various embroidered designs with a sweetheart neckline. She tossed the latter to the side and decided on the first. She finished zipping it up as the door opened. She turned and saw Elijah standing in his tux.

He looked as handsome as ever. He had always looked good in whatever he wore, but there was just something about a man in a tux that she couldn’t resist.

“You look lovely,” he said.

“You’re not so bad yourself.” She gave a little twirl as she walked towards him. “Rebekah chose it. Well, sort of.”

“She does have a knack for fashion, no matter the decade. Are you ready?”

“Not even slightly. The last thing I want is to go and be nice to a bunch of strangers.”

“You do have a talent for it, though.”

“It’s my natural charm.”

Elijah leaned down and kissed her. A part of her was scared that it would smear her lipstick, but the majority of her didn’t care in the slightest. She quietly moaned into him. They hadn’t gotten a moment alone since everyone had woken up. She had been waiting for this for far too long. Ria was more than happy to let his hands explore the way that the dress hugged her curves in all the right places. The asymmetrical design of the skirt gave him perfect access to her legs. He nipped at her bottom lip. She was quick to push him against the wall and start to take off his tailcoat. Elijah leaned in towards her ear.

“We have company downstairs, darling,”

“Fuck the company. Fuck the party. _Fuck me._ ”

“So vulgar,”

She could feel his grin against her neck as he dug his fingers into her hips. He was careful not to rip the dress but she swore that she could feel his nails digging into her skin. She moved her lips down along his strong jaw, stopping just next to his carotid artery. It was so fragile even human teeth could pierce it. She could feel the veins under her eyes twitch as she thought about biting down. It would ruin his nice suit. She really considered it. She knew that they were going to have to go downstairs after this and she wanted there to be some sign that he was _hers_ and hers alone. They healed too quickly for hickeys and love bites. A nice splotch of blood right on his collar would let them all know that he belonged to someone. Werewolves and witches were loyal. Vampires were territorial.

Azariah kissed him there instead and started making her way down his neck. Elijah swallowed hard. She could feel his Adam's apple move as he tried to figure out what her next move was. Riah wasn’t even completely sure what her next move was. She hadn’t planned that far ahead. Elijah took advantage of her hesitance and switched their positions. He pushed against her sternum and forced her back further. He pressed his knee between her legs. He slowly looked her up and down, his gaze resting on her chest. He traced his fingers up and down her exposed skin. 

“You are so gorgeous,” he purred, pushing up her skirt. 

He grabbed her legs and wrapped them around his waist. She could feel how hard he was already. Elijah’s teeth grazed her skin as he leaned in for another kiss. She held onto his shoulders and moved her head away.

“We have a party to get to, Elijah,”

“Let’s be fashionably late. It’s not _our_ party anyway.”

Azariah grinned. It wasn’t like Elijah to say that, but she loved that he did. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

Azariah kissed him again. He held onto her tightly and moved them to the desk in the corner. Paper crumpled underneath her. She could hear guests arriving at the party downstairs. It only heightened her need for him to tear her apart. She grabbed the lapels of his jacket and their lips slammed together. She moaned against him, needing him to be closer. Riah’s hands found their way to his chest, feeling him over his shirt. He slid his hand up her thigh. He hooked a finger on her underwear, sliding it down and off her legs.

She reached to bring Elijah back to her again, but he stepped away. He smiled softly as he looked at her spread out on the desk. She was certain that he could see the desire in her eyes. He got down on his knees, pressing a soft kiss against her lower lips. She lifted her hips into his kiss. She couldn’t hide how badly she wanted him. She gripped the edge of the desk tightly as he dipped in his tongue, swirling it in slow circles around her clit. Riah bit down on her lip to keep herself quiet. She buried a hand into his hair. 

“E-Elijah,” she gasped out an almost silent plea, “fuck me already. Please.”

“Your wish is my command.”

He dropped his pants to the ground and stroked himself a few times before thrusting into her. He let out a breathy moan as her walls squeezed around him. Azariah touched his cheek gently and smiled. It wasn’t a smirk or a grin, but a genuine smile. The one that she reserved just for him. Elijah gripped her waist and continued his movements.

She leaned back on the desk as he fucked her. She closed her eyes and let the feeling of him so close wash over her. It didn’t matter how many times they did this. She would never get used to it. She would always love the feel of his hands on her skin, the sensation reaching every nerve in her body. Her moans rolled off her lips with ease. Elijah let out an occasional grunt. He bit down into her shoulder. It wasn’t hard enough to draw blood, but it still sent a jolt of pain and pleasure through her. 

“Elijah, I-” Azariah’s grip moved to his upper arms. She was doing everything in her power not to rip the fabric as she whimpered his name again. “I- I’m close.”

Elijah pulled her body up closer to him. Their chests were flush against each other as he fucked her. She buried her face into the crook of his neck and squeezed her legs around him. Her breathing quickened as her orgasm washed over her. Her whole body tensed. Elijah wasn’t too far behind, giving a few more sloppy thrusts before he came with a moan of her name.

They both leaned heavily against the desk for a moment. Riah gave him a quick kiss and found a new pair of underwear. Elijah pulled his pants back up and redid his suspenders.

“I think I’m more than ready to face them all now,” she joked.

“Then we should probably head down before they get suspicious.”


	28. **Chapter 28**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> peaxchyhearts: Riah and Elijah can't keep it in their pants, can they?
> 
> me: challenge accepted.

They walked downstairs. Azariah had her arm wrapped around Elijah’s and a fake smile plastered to her face. She didn’t _really_ care about what happened to any of these people and she didn’t see why she needed to care. Still, she had gotten used to talking up guests over the years. It was important to fit in with human society, as pointless as some of it had started to seem in her old age. She could pretend to enjoy these functions while Elijah was next to her. He’d actually make them fun for her. She could be nice to these people because she knew that the others wanted to stay in Mystic Falls. Riah didn’t know why they had to make such a big deal about the whole thing. Why Esther had to make it such a big deal. It didn’t make _sense_.

Still, Azariah smiled and pretended like she didn’t care about any of that. She took a deep breath and look at Elijah. He was already scanning over the people that had arrived. She reached up and moved some of his hair back into place. He kissed her cheek in thanks. Kol made his way over to them with his signature grin. He slapped Elijah’s shoulder.

“Finally got what you wanted, brother?” Kol joked, looking pointedly as Azariah.

“Mind your tongue, Kol,” Elijah said coldly. 

Kol held up his hands defensively, his smile never dropping. “I meant nothing by it. Simply jesting. Azariah thought it was funny. Right, Riah?”

“I think you think you’re hilarious,” Riah said. “Go on, Kol. You’ll have plenty of time to terrorise us _after_ the party. Introduce yourself. Try not to kill anyone.”

Kol stuck his tongue out at her before he walked away as elegantly as he had arrived. She shook her head. That was the way this night was going to go then. She promised Elijah she would do her best to keep an eye on Kol while she went around and talked to guests. She had sort of introduced herself to several people in Mystic Falls, but this was her opportunity to learn who the members of the Founder’s Council were. The mayor already knew that they were all vampires. She probably knew long before the meeting with Elijah and Esther, considering the fact her son was a hybrid and dating a different vampire. There were a lot of things that had changed while she’d been in a box. 

She started her way to the entrance. Damon was sharing a glass of champagne with the mayor. Kol made his way to them before Azariah could. He and Damon almost immediately started to fight with each other. It was mostly… silent, but clearly they were trying to see who was stronger. Or more bullheaded. Kol looked at Damon’s outstretched hand and walked away. Elena came in. She was wearing a ball gown that suited her well. Damon looked at her incredulously. He left Carol to go confront her. Even Stefan found his way to them. Azariah hadn’t seen either of them come in. She’d been… occupied earlier. 

Riah walked over to one of the tables lined with drinks. She grabbed one and tuned in her hearing to Damon, Stefan, and Elena as she took a sip of champagne.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” Damon said.

“Well, I am. And I’m not leaving until I find out what Esther wants. So, shall we?” Elena responded.

Azariah was right. She _knew_ that Esther was up to something and now she needed Elena for it. It was never a good thing when a witch asked for a doppelganger. Especially not one directly related to the reason that all of them were vampires now. Riah bit her tongue. She couldn’t confront Elena while Stefan and Damon were around her. While she had her little bodyguards, she’d never be able to speak freely. They didn’t even want her to be here. No doubt they’d be trying to get her to leave. Riah talked to a couple of the other guests, keeping an eye on Elena. 

It took too long for Elena to be alone. Riah excused herself from the conversation and went to Elena quickly. She looked shocked to see Riah there. A little scared, too, but she couldn’t blame Elena for that part. She hadn’t exactly been the best person around her in the past. 

“Elena. I hear you have a meeting with Esther tonight,” Riah began. “Any chance you’ll tell me what it’s about?”

“Why do you care?” Elena asked.

“Esther and I have a… complicated relationship. I’m not going to threaten you, Elena, and I’m not going to be angry if you don’t tell me now or after the meeting. The only thing I want is to live peacefully with my family.” Elena opened her mouth to speak but Riah held up her hand. “Just… think about it, Elena, from my perspective. My family has suffered. A lot, at the hands of various people, not the least of which being Esther and Mikael. Honestly, the only thing I want is their safety and their happiness.”

“I-”

“Elena Gilbert, I presume. I’m Finn Mikaelson” Finn walked up to the pair. He shared a glance with Azariah. She couldn’t get a read on him. What did he want with Elena? He had to know what Esther was planning, but he’d never tell Riah. “Azzie, do you mind if Elena and I chat for a moment?”

“Not at all.” She smiled at the two of them. “Elena.”

Azariah walked away. She knew that Finn wouldn’t say anything while Azariah was in earshot. She wasn’t going to get any information while Finn was around, unfortunately. She went to find another group of people to talk to. She knew for a fact now that Esther had some kind of plan and Finn was in on it. Riah doubted that it was anything nice. Esther wanted Klaus dead still. She had to. Right?

“Uh, if everyone could gather, please.” Elijah called to everyone. That was Azariah’s cue. She headed up the stairs and took her place next to Elijah. Rebekah stood a little behind as Finn joined them, leaving Azariah between him and Elijah. Kol and Klaus stood near the top. All six of them were sporting glasses of champagne. Esther was standing at the top of the stairs. “Welcome, thank you for joining us. You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this,” Elijah watched Esther as she moved down to join them all, “it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourselves a partner, please join us in the ballroom.”

Azariah watched as Esther locked eyes with Elena. That wasn’t an easy look. Esther really, really was planning something and Riah was dying to know what it was. She was tempted to find a place to hide away while Elena and Esther talked so she could listen in and find out for herself. No need to trust anyone else. Before she could make a decision on her own, Elijah took her hand. He was smiling at her. It was enough to almost make her forget about all of this.

“May I have this dance?” he asked.

“Oh, I thought you’d never ask.” Riah grinned.

“My lady.”

Elijah escorted Riah to the dance floor. She remembered when they had first learned this waltz. They had been in Austria and they’d had to learn in order to fully pass as the nobility. They’d spent a lot of nights struggling to get the steps just right.

**_1354_ **

Azariah did her best not to look at her feet. Instead, she looked at her hands in Elijah’s. Even without the music, she could feel herself getting lost in the steps. Riah moved her foot back as she moved around his body. He brought her close for an instant before they were separated again. Finally, she looked up and locked eyes with Elijah. Her heart skipped a beat as he smiled down at her. God, he could make her melt with that smile. She let herself get distracted. She stepped on his foot and started to fall. Elijah did his best to catch her, but the best he could do was hold onto her and fall, too. He landed roughly on top of her.

Elijah propped himself up on his elbows and shook his head with a chuckle. 

“Sorry about that,” Azariah said. “I’m not too much of a dancer, it seems.”

“Well, that’s why we’re practising.” He stood up and helped her to her feet. “We need to be ready to see the Duke by next week. You’ll get this down.”

“With you as my teacher, of course I will.”

They stayed near each other. Too close. Azariah was too tempted to bring him closer still, to feel his lips against hers and- no. She couldn’t. She stepped back. She took a deep breath and straightened out her dress.

“So, from the beginning, then?”

**_2010_ **

Azariah smiled as she followed the steps. She had come a long way since then. It was nice to have this opportunity again. She’d developed her love of dance because of Elijah. They bowed to the people across from them. Elijah was smiling. He looked really happy to be there. He looked across all of his siblings with the respective partners. Riah looked at Klaus and Caroline. Klaus hadn’t looked at someone like that since Aurora. Caroline was even wearing a dress that Klaus had had forever. He didn’t really think that a dance and a few fancy gifts would make up for everything that he had done? Azariah shook her head and turned to focus on Elijah instead.

“You really look absolutely stunning, Azariah,” Elijah said. “Everyone here has their eyes on you.”

“Please. They’re looking at you, Elijah. Handsome and charming. You’re a package deal.”

He twirled her away and brought her back in close, gently squeezing her waist. He had this way of making her forget everything that was happening around them. But she couldn’t let that fog overtake her mind. She had to tell Elijah what was happening. As they moved in closer, she leaned in towards his ear.

“Esther is planning something with Elena, Elijah,” Riah whispered. 

Elijah nodded. “I’ll look into it, Riah. I promise.”

She thanked him and they switched partners. She found herself dancing side-by-side with Finn. He was doing surprisingly well for someone that had been unconscious when the waltz was invented. He was barely paying attention to the steps he was taking. He had his gaze not-so-subtly settled on Elena who was now dancing with Stefan. 

“What are you planning, Finn?” Azariah asked.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Azzie,” he said. “I’m simply enjoying time with my family.”

The way he said that word, _family_... it was like he was struggling to get it out. He followed Elena with his eyes as she and Stefan left the dance floor. “I don’t buy that for a second. You keep looking at Elena.”

“I just never expected to see Tatia again. They’re identical.”

“Finn-”

The song ended and Finn bowed. People left the dance floor. Elijah made his way back to Azariah. She watched as Finn walked upstairs towards Esther. Elena and Stefan were nowhere to be seen. 

“You have to talk to Elena before she sees Esther, Elijah. She trusts you. You know how to ask her for help.”

“I want to believe that Mother has forgiven Niklaus, but you’re right. It’s strange. I’ll talk to Elena.”

“Thank you, Elijah,” Azariah pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

He walked away to go find Elena. Riah bit her lip. She wanted this night to be just for the family and nothing else. There weren’t words enough to describe how much she wanted that. They all deserved that after everything they had been forced to go through. She walked into the main foyer and looked around at everyone. She grabbed another glass of champagne and downed it quickly. She was going to need a lot more if she was even going to get buzzed. This night was becoming very stressful very quickly. It wasn’t at all what she wanted. She had thought that Finn was happy to be back with them all. That was the way that he had made it seem when they were all together getting ready for this night.

As she picked up her third glass, she saw Rebekah and Kol talking. It was never a good sign when the two of them got together. She didn’t need anymore stress packed on top of everything going on with Esther. She headed over to them and gave them a look.

“What are you two up to now?” she asked. “Don’t ruin this night.”

Kol held a hand to his chest in mock betrayal. “How could you think so little of me, Azariah?”

“Because I know you, Kol. You are always planning something. And when Rebekah is involved, it’s extra devious.”

“Relax Riah,” Rebekah sighed. “We’re not planning anything. We’re just catching up.”

“Sure you are. Well, if you’re going to hurt anyone, do it outside. Or somewhere private. And clean up after yourselves.”

She took another sip of champagne, looking at the two of them suspiciously as she walked off. They were snickering and whispering to each other. Someone was probably going to die tonight, which was a bad thing but Azariah had more important things to worry about. She paced around by the stairs. She wanted to go up there and listen for herself. Elijah found his way back to her. He stopped next to her and followed her gaze. He sighed softly.

“Elena promised she would tell me about their meeting. Now, we just have to wait,” he said.

“I hate waiting,” Riah said. “I’m going to need a stronger drink if we have to wait.”

“Mm.”

It was Elijah’s presence by her side that kept her still. She didn’t even break her second glass of scotch. Ten minutes later, Elena came downstairs. Elijah and Azariah both moved over to her in the foyer. She looked between the two of them nervously. Esther had shown up as well, walking near the top of the stairs. Riah watched her.

“So, how was my mother?” Elijah asked.

“Intense,” Elena admitted.

“What did she need to speak with you about?” Azariah crossed her arms. 

Elijah grabbed two glasses of champagne, handing one of them to Riah. They were tinted red, but it didn’t smell like pink or strawberry champagne. Elena glanced up at Esther on the staircase. Elijah pulled her attention back to them,

“Elena? Should I be concerned about my mother's intentions?”

Elena’s heart rate increased. She looked between the two of them nervously. “She just wanted to apologise for trying to have me killed,” she said finally.

Elijah and Riah shared a glance. She was lying.

“So she’s forgiven Klaus, then?”

“It’s true,”

Everytime Elena lied, her heart sped up more. She felt guilty about lying to them at least. Crystal rang out. Esther leaned against the banister, holding her own glass of red-tinged champagne. She was smiling too sweetly. She had called Elena for something and Elena was willing to lie about whatever it was. Azariah held onto the stem of her glass tightly.

“Good evening, ladies and gentleman. Waiters are coming around with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass.” Esther smiled. Riah looked at her glass suspiciously. “It provides me with no greater joy then to see my family back together as one. I'd like to thank you all for being part of this spectacular evening. Cheers!”

The crowd called out in agreement. Azariah sniffed her glass. It was regular champagne. At least it smelled like it was, but she didn’t believe it. Not for an instant. Everyone started to drink from their glasses. Elena’s eyes scanned the room, landing on each one of the Originals in turn. Klaus looked back at Riah and smiled as he drank his own. Elena’s heart beat increased again. Even Elijah took a sip. Finn locked eyes with Azariah and downed the rest of his champagne. There were too many sets of eyes on her. Against her better judgment, Riah took a sip. It was small, barely enough to cover her tongue, but she could taste it. Something metallic. There was only one other time that she had tasted metal in alcohol and that was the night that Mikael killed her.

She didn’t finish the champagne.

She walked to Finn more confidently now. “You’re planning something, Finn, and I’m going to find out exactly what it is.”

“Azzie, I promise you that I have done nothing,” he smiled sweetly. Too sweetly.

“You forget, Finn, that we were together for well over a century. I know when you’re lying. You’re not very good at it. You have barely left Esther’s side since you’ve awoken.”

Finn cocked his head to the side. “Why do you care, Azariah? Mother and I have always been close. I am simply relieved to have her back now.”

Azariah’s champagne glass broke in her hand. She winced as the glass cut her hand and alcohol flowed into the wound. Finn jumped into action, helping her pick up the pieces. She hadn’t realised just how tightly she’d been holding it. She sighed heavily. That was all that she was going to be able to get out of Finn. He was bad at lying, but he was good at keeping secrets. He wasn’t going to give her anything. 

A commotion started outside. Screaming. Riah rushed to the foyer. She didn’t see Finn pocket one of the bloody pieces of glass and walk towards Esther. Damon was standing over Kol’s unconscious form. Stefan was looking at him like he was insane.

“Far be it for me to cause a problem.” Damon did a little bow and walked away. 

Riah got to work, assuring guests that everything was fine and trying to get them to go back inside. Their brother had just had a little bit too much to drink and got in a fight with Damon as he was wont to do. They seemed to buy it. It would be something for them all to talk about. Rebekah looked guilty. Azariah looked up and saw Matt there. Ah. Kol was trying to kill Matt, then. Rebekah had probably brought him to the party for that reason. Riah threw Kol over her shoulder and carried him around to one of the side entrances. She dropped him on the ground and walked over his body. Most of the guests took the excitement as their cue to go home. She thanked them all for coming as they headed out the door. Elena shot one last look back in Azariah’s direction. Riah could have sworn that she saw something that almost looked like pity in her gaze. 

She could hear Elijah and Esther talking quietly as she headed up the stairs towards her room. Azariah just wanted to wash this night off of her, but there was no doubt that she was going to need to talk to Kol and Rebekah. They needed to understand that things couldn’t be the way that they used to, not if they were going to stay in this town. Not if Esther was going to stay with them. They couldn’t just kill people whenever they wanted. That shouldn’t have even been an option in the first place. 

She ran into Elijah in the hallway. He was angry.

“I can’t believe them. One night without violence. They’re… argh!” he threw his hands into the air in frustration. “Children. They’re children.”

“Do you want me to talk to them?”

“No. No, I will. This rebellious streak has to end one way or another.”

“Well, when you’re done scolding the children, I’ll be in our room.” She kissed his cheek. “Hurry back.”

He kissed her palm as she walked away. She was exhausted. She unzipped her dress as soon as her door was closed. She let it fall to the ground and stepped out. She’d pick it up in the morning. For now, she just wanted to take a warm bath and try to relax a little before tomorrow. She had a plan. Well, half a plan. She knew that Elena was lying. She knew that it had something to do with her entire family and Esther hadn’t forgiven Klaus. Elena had _lied_ and the only way that Riah was going to get answers out of her was… with threats. It was a last resort. She didn’t have much of a choice now. Not if she was going to stop this before Esther got what she wanted.

Azariah sank into the water, submerging herself. She closed her eyes. When she was underwater, that was the only time that she felt like she might still be human. She couldn’t hear anything but the gently moving water around her. It was relaxing. She could imagine that she was in the pond that was by the village, practising one of her water breathing spells. Those had been much simpler times. Of course, she hadn’t been with the one person she wanted to be with. She had kept her promise to Finn for a long time. After it was irreparably broken, she had kept away from Eliah out of paranoia. Life wasn’t perfect back then, but at least she wasn’t paranoid all the time. 

Riah came up for air. She ran her hands through her hair and stared at the ceiling. The door opened and closed. Elijah slowly made his way to the bathroom. He’d dropped his tailcoat over a chair and rolled up his sleeves. His bow tie was hanging around his neck, his collar unbuttoned. He sat at the edge of the bath.

“That stressful of a night, then?” he said softly.

“Mm.” She reached out to him. He took her hand and rubbed gentle circles around her knuckles. “I want to stop thinking about it for the rest of the night, but we need a plan. Elena was lying.”

“I know.” Elijah took a deep breath. “We can come up with a plan in the morning. Relax, Riah. Enjoy your bath.”

“Only if you join me.”

He chuckled and shook his head, but Riah could see that he was tempted. He kneeled next to the tub and picked up her shampoo. He dipped his hands into the water, his fingers brushing against her thigh. She sucked in a breath. Even that simple touch set a fire in her. He started to work a lather into her hair, filling the air with the scent of vanilla and peaches. She moved back into his touch, his fingers massaging her scalp. He leaned in close to her. His lips brushed against her earlobe.

“Well, what kind of a man would I be if I didn’t help a lady relax?”

He dipped his hands into the water again, cupping them to pour water over her hair. Each time, he barely touched the swell of her breasts. Elijah knew exactly what he was doing. It took him several moments to be satisfied that all of the soap was gone from her hair. She could feel him move away from her. She bent her head back to look up at him. He was looking at her, not with lust but with pure love and adoration. She had seen the look on his face more than once throughout the years. The most prominent in her memory was the first time they had reached Europe and took up residence with the de Martel’s. It was the first time that she had worn such fine clothing. Elijah had compared her to a princess. If not for Finn, she would have kissed him then.

She reached her hand up, tenderly touching his cheek. He closed his eyes as she made contact. Her fingertips brushed his skin. His hand over hers, Elijah leaned down to kiss Azariah, clutching her face. His body pressed against the side of the tub awkwardly. She didn’t care. She opened her mouth, letting his tongue sweep boldly into her mouth. He groaned. It was music to her ears.

He broke the kiss, panting lightly. He moved his hand down her body, lightly squeezing her neck before he reached her breast. His thumb flicked across her nipple. Riah bit her lip and pressed her back against the porcelain. Elijah’s gaze slid along her body. He kissed her neck as he continued his journey downwards, stopping between her legs.

“Elijah, plese, touch me,” she whispered, pushing her hips against his hand.

He began to slowly move his fingers against her. Riah slid further down into the tub. Her lips parted as her breathing came faster. Elijah leaned his forehead to hers. He had the touch of literal hundreds of years of experience. He moved his fingers faster, circling around her clit. They were a long way past any kind of decorum and Azariah was done being quiet. She moaned in time with his movements. She lifted her hips to meet his fingers. As her release hit her, she curled her toes and stretched her legs.

She pulled away to kiss his cheek. Riah wrapped a hand around the back of his neck, tugging at the hair at the nape of his neck. He kissed her again. Azariah stood up. Elijah handed her the towel from the chair. She took her time drying off. Elijah watched her hungrily. She practically sauntered into the other room with Elijah trailing behind her. He stopped by the door, leaning against the frame with a small smile as he regarded her. She dropped the towel to the ground and walked over to him. He had no idea what she was planning. Honestly, Riah wasn’t entirely sure, but she had an idea.

Riah dropped to her knees and brought down Elijah’s trousers and boxers. His cock sprang free. She licked her lips, preparing herself before she took him into her mouth. She looked at him lustfully. He moaned as she worked her tongue around his tip, bobbing her head back and forth. His head hit the frame with a soft thud, his finger caressing her hair. After a few moments, he pulled her off.

“You are a minx, Riah,” he grinned, kissing her. “Get on the bed.”

She complied. Maybe a little too eagerly. Elijah pulled off his shirt and stepped out of his trousers, kicking off his shoes. He stalked towards her like a lion coming for its prey. His eyes never left hers as he crawled to her. He grabbed one of RIah’s ankles and pulled her down across the bed to him. He was on his knees. He lined himself up with her entrance. He slid in easily. Her back arched against him. After he was fully hilted, she wrapped her legs around his back to keep him there.

“Are you going to just stay there and look pretty all night or are you going to move?” she joked.

Elijah didn’t need to be told twice. He moved his hips fast against hers, each thrust hitting deep and just right. He lost control of himself, pounding her into the mattress. His face rested near her neck. He turned towards her and bit down. She let out a small moan as his fangs pierced her flesh. Her nails dragged across his back. His low groans and heavy breaths were music. Perfection. 

He moved faster and harder, his breath stuttering as he found his own release inside of her. Elijah crushed her into the mattress. They both took the time to catch their breath. Elijah rolled off of her. She brought the covers up around them. She leaned against him. For just a moment they didn’t need to worry about evil plots or Esther or Finn. They could just lay together. She closed her eyes and told herself that they needed to go to sleep. In the morning, they were going to have their work cut out for them.

She hoped that they were wrong and that Elena hadn’t been lying. She loved having her family back. Even Klaus, as much as she still despised him and all he had done. She had thought that they could go back to the way that things used to be. It was naive, yes, but it was a good dream. While it lasted, anyway.


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it continues. While I watch people play Ace Attorney and yell at the game. So I don't have to.

Azariah woke up to Elijah rubbing light circles into her shoulder. She rolled over to face him. Soft light was already breaking through the curtains. She soaked in the moment. When she got out of that bed, she was going to have to face the day and start planning how to stop Esther’s plan. Whatever it was. For now, she just wanted to take in the fact that she was laying next to the man that she loved more than anything else in the world. Elijah pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose. She ran her fingers through his hair and smiled.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Hi.” Riah stretched. “Let’s never leave this bed. Like, ever.”

“That is a very tempting offer. I wish we could. But Elena was lying.”

“No Elena talk in this bed. No Esther. Or anything else.”

“We have to get up, Riah.”

She sighed and rolled away. “I know. I know. Y’know, you’re not very good at pillowtalk.”

“I’ll work on it.”

He got out of bed first. Azariah reached over to his side of the bed. It was still warm. With little effort but a dramatic performance anyway, she got up. She picked out one of Elijah’s dress shirts and a pair of dark jeans, pulling them on before she headed downstairs. Elijah was going to do a little more investigating. He didn’t trust Esther, per se, but he needed more than just Elena’s heart to prove anything. Azariah knew that he would do whatever it took to get to the bottom of this. As for her, she needed to come up with some kind of idea on how to get Elena to tell her the truth. Her or any one of her friends. She would have told them anything that Esther did.

As she headed into the living room, Kol and Klaus both gave a slow clap. Kol was grinning like a fool.

“Well, well, look at that glow, brother,” Kol said. “You know, you and Elijah could _try_ to be a little quieter in a house full of vampires,”

“He’s right. Honestly.” Klaus shook his head.

“Oh, boys, you can say it. You’re both just jealous that your dates left without even a goodnight kiss. Go back to sketching your newest love, Klaus. Kol, try not to shatter the mirrors.”

Kol stuck his tongue out at her. Klaus had a smirk on his face as he went back to his sketch. Azariah shook her head. She was in a house full of children. Thousand year old children. It was going to be fantastic staying with. She didn’t see how she could get either of them to help her and Elijah figure out what Esther was planning. They were both too self-obsessed to help anyone. It would probably end up just being her and Elijah in the end. At least there were two of them. The front door opened and closed. Rebekah walked in, wearing the same dress from last night. Her hair was slightly askew and she looked ashamed of herself. Ah. At least _half_ of the Originals knew how to have fun. Kol looked his sister up and down with his devious grin. Rebekah groaned and tried to go towards the stairs.

“Well, well, well, there's our girl!” Kol stood in front of her.

“Get out of my way, Kol.” Rebekah’s tone was dark.

“Out all night. What a scandal! I trust you did better than that commoner? Matt, was it?”

“If you don't shut your mouth, Kol, the next thing to come out of it will be your teeth.” Rebekah growled. Klaus grinned and Azariah sighed. “Don’t start, Nik!”

“I didn't say anything.” Klaus held up his hands defensively.

“I'm bored. Our sister is a strumpet and Riah’s disloyal to her husband,” Riah stood up to protest at his words, but Kol ignored her, “but at least they’re having fun. I need entertainment,” Kol complained.

“What are you waiting for? Go on, have at it.” Klaus gestured to the door.

“It’s not fun to go alone. Join me, Nik! It’s the least that you can do after sticking a dagger in my heart.”

“Okay. Why not?” Klaus set his drawing to the side, leaning back into the couch. “I didn’t have nearly enough to drink last night, what with you trying to murder Rebekah’s date.”

“Yes, please, go. Riah and I can use the time to finally catch up,” Rebekah said. “This home has enough men rolling around in it.”

“Just like you, Bekah.”

Kol couldn’t help but get one last quip in as he and Klaus were leaving. Rebekah threw one of her shoes at him. Kol snickered and continued his retreat. Rebekah stamped her foot in frustration. It wasn’t easy being the youngest, especially when they were all immortal anyway. Riah gave her a pat on the back. There wasn’t much else that she could do. Rebekah slumped down onto one of the couches. Elijah came into the room a few moments later. He looked over at Rebekah and Azariah. His worry was etched into his face.

“Rebekah,” he said.

She groaned. “Not you too, Elijah.”

“I’m worried about Mother. Have you noticed her strange behaviour?”

“She’s been dead for a thousand years. What’s strange for her?”

“Burnt sage.” Elijah held out his hand, showing them both the burned leaves. Rebekah hesitantly took it from him. “She was doing a privacy spell.”

“You know how she fancies such things.” Bekah dropped the sage back into Elijah’s hand. “Why don’t you ask Finn? He’s been doting on her.”

“I don’t trust Finn.” Elijah answered quickly. “He hates what we are.” His eyes met Azariah’s. She looked away. “He always has.

“That's not true,” Rebekah said quietly.

She had only been a teenager when they were turned. She didn’t know about everything that had happened. She hadn’t seen the way that Finn looked at Azariah the first time she’d fed. Rebekah truly wanted to believe that her older brother didn’t care, just like the rest of them because they were all together.

“And as for Mother, she returned for one reason: to make our family whole. She loves us. What trouble are you looking to find?”

Rebekah left without another word. Elijah watched her leave. Riah wasn’t sure what kind of a reaction he’d been hoping for, but it seemed that Rebekah storming off wasn’t it. Riah walked over to Elijah.

“Elena is the only person left to ask,” Elijah said.

“She lied to us once. We can’t trust her not to do it again. The only way we’ll learn anything is through force.” Riah clenched her fist.

“I know. I’ll take care of Elena. You got to the Salvatores. Take one of the brothers. Stefan, preferably. I’ll ask Rebekah to help with Elena once we’ve gotten some answers.”

Azariah nodded. She hated that it had come to this. She really did. When she told Elena that she wanted to live peacefully in Mystic Falls with her family, she had been telling the truth. She had hoped that would be enough but she should have known better. She never should have trusted Esther for an instant. No, she should have snapped the witch’s neck when she had the chance. Riah kissed Elijah once before he left to find Elena. He was going to walk with her and see what she actually knew. If it came down to it… Rebekah would be a good guard until they undid this. If they couldn’t, then Elena would die. Neither of them wanted it, but it was something that had to happen. Azariah would take whichever Salvatore brother she could to the tomb and do the same. It was a good plan. Elena’s friends and family cared about each other just as deeply as the Mikaelsons cared for their family. It could be a strength or a weakness. She and Elijah were going to exploit it.

Riah couldn’t let herself feel the guilt. Not now. Not while her family’s lives were potentially in danger. Even if it was just Klaus. She said she wanted the family to be together and that included the hybrid bastard. Especially now. She couldn’t sit and let him die. If anyone was going to kill Niklaus Mikaelson, it was going to be her.

She headed towards the kitchen after Elijah left. She needed a little bit of coffee to get her blood flowing before she started kidnapping people. She finished the cup quickly, ignoring the heat but regretting not savoring it. Klaus had really gone all out with… everything. Riah grabbed a jacket and went into the foyer. As she was headed out the door, she got a text from Elijah. Esther had linked them all together. She was going to kill _all_ of them. He gave her a time to kill whichever brother she got. Simple enough. She started to text him back, but she felt a sharp prick in her neck followed by what felt like fire in her veins. Vervain. She reached around to her attacker, throwing a surprisingly heavy person over her shoulder.

She ripped the syringe out of her neck and crushed it under her foot. Whoever had attacked her was a fool. Original vampires needed a highly concentrated dose of vervain for it to have any kind of effect. Riah stalked towards her attacker.

He tried again. Azariah barely dodged in time. It was _Finn_. Finn was attacking her and from the look on his face, he wanted to kill her. Was that what Esther had done then? She’d linked them together and given Finn extra strength? She dodged another blow. No, he was still just as strong as fast as Riah was. She rushed at him, digging her nails into his shoulders as she shoved him into the wall. It cracked under their combined weight. Finn pushed her off of him.

“What the hell are you trying to pull?!” Azariah snarled.

“You’re the only one not related by blood,” Finn said, “so you have to die for the bond to work. Even with the blood from your glass, it wasn’t enough. You must sacrifice yourself for us all to die.”

“You’re delusional!”

They started fighting again. Her head snapped against the floor as he shoved her. She was back on her feet quickly, running up the stairs. She had to get to Elijah. To Kol and Klaus. Anyone. Azariah could take care of Finn on her own, if he didn’t have Esther on his side. She wouldn’t be able to take care of him on her own. She ran for one of the balconies. She prepared herself to jump, but a searing pain ripped through her head. She yelled out in pain, holding on her tightly to her temples and collapsing to the floor. Two pairs of shoes came towards her. Riah looked up to see Esther and Finn.

“Azariah,” Esther said softly, “so strong for so long. Rest now, my child. This will all be over soon.”

“Fuck. You.” she spat. It took far too much effort just for those two words.

Finn walked to her and snapped her neck.

****

* * *

****

Azariah woke up surrounded by flame. Her phone was gone. She couldn’t see anything around her but she had been unconscious for a long time. The moon was slowly reaching its apex. Riah struggled to get to her feet. Her head was still pounding. It felt like what she imagined a hangover felt. She groaned. Everything was spinning. For the first time in a thousand years, she felt like she was going to puke. She didn’t even bother standing up all the way. She took that time to catch her breath. She felt… human. Azariah had forgotten how weak they actually were. For a fleeting moment, she feared that was what Esther had done. She still had her fangs. She was still a vampire. She was still weak. No doubt after Finn snapped her neck, they’d pumped her full of vervain and witchcraft.

She finally felt strong enough to stand. Riah walked to the edge of the circle. She was immediately met with an invisible wall. She walked around it, looking for any weak points in the spell. Esther was still powerful. She kicked it woefully. She was stuck and she felt like shit. She looked around through the flames. She was at the old witches house. It made sense. There were a lot of powerful witch spirits here, more than a few of them belonging to the Bennets. Ah, the Bennet witches. Directly descended from Ayana. And Esther had a direct line to all of them, living and dead. That was why she was even _half_ as powerful as she was now. Azariah growled, digging her nails into the palm of her hand. 

She hoped that Elijah had a plan. God, she hoped that he knew what he was doing now. She looked up at the sky again. It would be a few hours still until the moon was in the right position and Esther was at full power. Riah would be dead. She would actually be dead, just like the rest of her family.

Azariah watched as Finn and Esther walked out of the woods towards her. She crossed her arms. The flames grew small, still in a circle, but she could see clearly outside now. She glared at Finn. It was because of him that she was trapped. He really hated her so much that he didn’t care that she was going to die. They walked right past her and into the house. Riah sat down. It seemed that she was going to be stuck there for a while. Fantastic. 

After a while, two more people came in view. Riah stood up again. Finn and Esther left the house. It was Abby and Bonnie Bennet. Wonderful. Truly brilliant. Esther was going to channel them in person. It was just going to make her that much more powerful. Azariah kicked the wall again. Bonnie and Abby were talking. Mostly about what Bonnie’s grandmother would be saying now. Esther smiled and walked towards them.

“Bennett witches. Thank you for coming. I can think of no better allies than the woman who sent Mikael into his long sleep and the girl who fought Niklaus so bravely,” Esther said.

Abby crossed her arms. “Why exactly did you invite us here?”

“You are the descendants of the witch Ayana. She was a great mentor of mine and I think it's only fitting that I draw from her bloodline.”

“So are you channeling our ancestors?” Bonnie asked.

“I draw from the entirety of the Bennett bloodline, living and dead. The connection affords me great power, although it is somewhat difficult to maintain, which is why I require you, mother and daughter. The bloodline made manifest. Tonight, my sisters, we shall bring peace to the spirits of nature that we serve and for that I thank you.”

The three witches headed a little ways back to talk. Finn stopped next to Riah’s circle.

“You have to understand why we’re doing this, Riah. We should have died a long time ago,” Finn said.

“You’re pathetic.” Riah spat. “You really are, you know that? All that talk of forgiveness. Telling me to be with Elijah. All of it was bullshit. You never meant any of it. And I was the fool that believed you.”

“You have no idea what my life has been.”

“What life?! You were stuck in a box for 900 years, Finn! You don’t have a life! If we’d never become vampires, you never would have met Sage and we would have been stuck in a loveless marriage. We would have been _miserable!”_

“You know nothing!” Finn yelled. He composed himself. “You know nothing of the hole I have felt. For centuries.”

“Of course I do! I’ve felt that hole too, Finn, so many times that you can’t begin to imagine. Even now, it’s in my heart. But I grin and bear it because that’s what we do. We adapt and we survive!”

“Finn.” Esther held out her hands to her son. “Come.”

Finn shot one last look at Azariah before he left to do whatever it was his puppet master had in mind for him. Riah sighed. Finn started to pour salt on the ground, forming a perfect pentagram. Each point of the star had a torch set up and one more in the middle. He took his time to light each one while Esther talked more with her precious Bennet witches. If Azariah wasn’t stuck in that circle, oh she’d sink her fangs into Bonnie’s neck so quick. Then she’d take great pleasure in killing Esther. And she’d find Sage - she knew that bitch was still alive somewhere - and she’d bring her to Finn and she’d make good on her promise from 900 years ago. She’d rip her heart out and make sure that Finn was never happy again.

God, she sounded like Klaus. She sounded like _Mikael_. Azariah started pacing. This wasn’t her. This rage. This aggression. She didn’t do this. It wasn’t who she was. This was what Esther had made her into. 

“Six torches. One for each of my children.” Esther looked out fondly at her symbolic family. “As the witch who cast the Immortality spell, I can also reverse it. It’s for that reason I have brought Azariah here. She is not of my blood yet I changed her just the same. She was always like a daughter to me. Once I turn them all into humans, I can kill them. Azariah will be our sacrifice. With her blood, the six of them are bound. With her blood, they will all die.”

Bonnie and Abby looked at Riah and Finn. “And you’re just willing to die?”

“My mother is releasing my family from a lifetime of shame. This is a gift,” Finn said.

Riah clapped dramatically. “Always so selfless. Always willing to take care of his family with no thought of himself. The dutiful older brother.” Finn glared at her. “Oh, sorry. I wasn’t talking about you, Finn. I was talking about Elijah. The one that _actually_ took care of us while you were off moping. Or fucking someone else. Or doing anything besides be helpful. You want to know why no one ever bothered to wake you up, Finn? Because _you aren’t our family anymore._ You made your bed, _dear husband_. Don’t act for a second like you care what happens to the rest of us.” She turned to Esther. “And you’re not doing this out of _love_ , Esther. You’re not doing it to restore balance. You lost your mind the day Henrik died. You’re a sad woman, a pathetic witch, and you’re going to die. Maybe not today. Maybe it won’t even be one of us that kills you. But your kind of crazy doesn’t get to live in this world. Not for long.”

The flames went down. The circle was gone. Esther held out her arms to Riah.

“Come to me, my child. Face your end.”

Azariah stood tall. She stepped into Esther’s pentagram. She wasn’t going to show any weakness to her. Not now. Riah didn’t doubt that Esther had already seen her at her worst but that was when Esther had no power. Azariah was going to show Esther that she still had no power. Not over her. As she crossed the salt line, she felt a familiar prick in her chest. She and Finn both fell to the ground, dead.

****

* * *

****

She woke up before Finn. Esther was by her favourite son. For once, Riah was grateful that the Salvatores couldn’t just do what they were told. She kept her breath quiet. Her strength hadn’t returned to her. She still felt faint, but she could make it if she tried. She made sure that Esther was busy with Finn before she tried to run. She got to the edge of the treeline before she felt her air being taken away from her. It felt like something was wrapped around her throat. She was pulled back by that same force. Esther groaned with the effort. Finn grabbed Riah by the collar of her shirt and back to the pentagram. The invisible wall was back up. She was stuck again.

Riah pushed against it once just to make her feel better. She fell back against the ground, left staring at the stars and swirling smoke from the torches. Was this it, then? Her time had finally come. For a few fleeting moments, she would be human and then she would die as a human. She would die, not surrounded by the people that she loved, but by those that hated her as much as she hated them. Riah wondered if she would go to the Other Side or if she would end up… somewhere else. The supernatural went to the Other Side and she was a witch before she was a vampire. Would she ever get to see Elijah again? Or would it only be his body that she saw? Oh, even just the thought of seeing him lifeless broke her heart in more ways than she could count.

Finn stepped into the circle with Esther. It was just the three of them. Finn looked around wildly. Riah propped herself up on her elbows. She could hear… footsteps. Lots of them.

“They're coming, Mother!” Finn said.

Azariah stood up. 

“No, it's too soon, the moon is not high enough.” Esther groaned. She looked to the Bennett witches. “Go! Quickly!”

Bonnie and Abby ran inside of the house. Azariah looked to see Kol, Elijah, and Klaus on their way towards her. Elijah was already looking for Riah. When he saw her, she could see the worry melt from his shoulders. Esther held her ground next to Finn. She opened her arms to her children.

“My sons, come forward.”

“Stay beside me, Mother,” Finn warned.

“It's okay. They can't enter.”

Kol walked towards the three of them. The torches flared up, nearly blinding Riah. Kol took several steps back and the flames died down again. Elijah looked around wildly, hoping that he could find some other way to get to Riah. She walked to the edge. There had to be a way out of this damned ring.

“That's lovely. We're stuck out here, while the favorite son plays sacrificial lamb with his wife. How pathetic you are, Finn.”

“Be quiet, Kol. Your brother knows virtue you cannot even imagine.” Esther looked proudly at Finn.

“Whatever you think of us, killing your own children will be an atrocity,” Elijah was barely keeping his voice cool. Azariah could hear the waver in his voice. He was barely containing his anger.

“My only regret is that I did not let you die a thousand years ago.”

“Enough,” Klaus growled. “All this talk is boring me. End this now, Mother, and give us back our sister or I'll send you back to Hell.”

Esther scoffed. She shook her head as she addressed all of them. “For a thousand years, I've been forced to watch you. Felt the pain of every victim, suffered while you shed blood. Even you, Elijah, with your claim to nobility, you're no better. All of you. You're a curse on this Earth. Stretched out over generations. If you've come to plead for your life, I'm sorry, you've wasted your time.”

Finn pulled Azariah to the center of the pentagram and forced her to her knees. Elijah started towards the pentagram. Klaus grabbed his arm. Even Klaus looked concerned about Azariah being in there. It was because he knew that her death meant his, too. He didn’t care if she actually died on her own. Esther began chanting. Riah could quite literally feel all of her strength being drained from her. It was a little bit at a time. Esther was doing it. She was actually taking away Azariah’s immortality.

Just as quickly as her strength faded, it came snapping back. She fell down again as Esther called out the witches. The torches flared again. Esther wasn’t safe anymore. Riah reached out weakly to grab her. Finn picked up his mother and ran away as quickly as he could. The flames died fully and Riah was left completely drained. She let her body drop to the ground. She was exhausted. She was scooped into someone’s arms. She looked up and saw Klaus. He brushed her hair out of her face.

“Hello there, sister. Glad that you made it out alive,” Klaus spoke softly.

“Klaus?”

“I can only imagine how horrible Elijah would be if you died. Speak of the devil.” Klaus looked up. Elijah had come to them. Klaus picked up Riah and handed her to his brother. “Take good care of her, brother. She’s had a long night.”

Elijah nodded, bringing her in close. She closed her eyes and leaned against him. She just wanted to go home. She wanted to forget all of the awful things that had happened tonight. Klaus looked over at his family.

“We are bound together, my family. Thank you, all of you.” Klaus smiled at them and started to leave with Kol trailing behind.

Elijah shook his head. “No,” he said softly. “We hurt people today, Azariah.”

“We did. When did we become these people? These… monsters? Finn used to be a sweet man. And now he wants us dead. Esther wants us dead. I…” Riah took a breath. “I don’t want to be this person.”

“Let’s go home, Azariah. While we still have one.”

He carried her to his car and set her down. She was struggling to catch her breath still. She checked to make sure that she had fangs again. She was still a vampire. She was just so, so tired. She couldn’t sleep, either. Everything just felt wrong. She was letting all of the guilt she’d been feeling throughout the day finally come through. It was bad. It was debilitating. She pulled her knees up to her chest. Riah and Elijah didn’t talk, not even when they got back to the house. He immediately went upstairs. Azariah went to the study. She sat down at the desk and found some paper. 

She stared at it blankly. She didn’t know how she was going to say this. None of it made sense and she was still so _angry_. Riah bit her tongue and just started writing.

_Finn,_

_You cannot begin to imagine how angry I am with you. There aren’t enough words to adequately describe it. You betrayed me tonight. I thought that I had felt the worst of what you could do after Sage. Thank you for proving me so wrong._

_Even as angry as I am, I can’t help but feel sorry for you. For everything that you have gone through because of the burden of our family. You see us as monsters and nothing more. A disgrace to the family. Well, then, you will be glad to know that I think the same of you. My pity can only extend so far, dear Finn, and I hope that you find what you crave._

_Perhaps, in another life, we could have grown to truly love each other the way we loved others. Perhaps, if we had stayed human. I know that you hate what you are, Finn. I can’t say that I forgive you for what you did tonight, but I also can’t fault you. We had our own set of terrible actions to counteract yours. One day, I genuinely hope that you will come to love your family again, Finn. I hope that I will come to welcome you back with open arms._

_Yours, even now,_

_Azariah_

She read the letter again and again. It was the best that she could put it. Anything more would be too much. She sealed it in an envelope and put it in Finn’s room. She doubted he would come back to this house ever. She took one last look around. She was a monster. Riah made her way down to the foyer. Elijah was standing there quietly.

“I can’t stay here any longer,” Elijah said. “Being in this town, after what I did to Elena… the family isn’t stronger together, Riah. We tear each other apart.”

“Then we’ll go. Anywhere in the world.”

“I’ll pack our bags.”

He kissed her cheek and went up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Azariah watched him go. She slumped into a chair with her hand over her face. This day… it was all too much. Someone stopped in front of her. She could smell blood. She looked up and saw Klaus offering her a cup of blood.

“I am truly glad that you’re alive, Azariah. I haven’t said the words aloud to you,” he said softly.

She took the glass from him, inspecting it carefully. “Probably because you put me in a box when we reunited, like I thought you would, and then I spent a considerable amount of time plotting your demise.”

“You would have let Esther kill me, then? If the roles were reversed?”

“God, no.” Azariah took a sip of the blood. She felt a little bit better. “I’d much rather kill you myself, Niklaus. Of course, that’s off the table. For now.”

He smirked. “I’ll keep that in mind and stay wary of you, _sister.”_

“Oh, I’m sure that you will. _Brother_.” She chuckled. “Elijah and I are leaving.”

“What?” 

“I can’t stay in this house, Niklaus. I… I need to get out of this town.” Riah shook her head and stared at the ground. “All I can think of is fire and how _weak_ I felt. I haven’t felt that way in a long time.”

He kneeled in front of her, taking her glass and setting it aside. He made her look at him. “You will always have a home here, Riah. You and Elijah both.”

“Uncharacteristically nice of you, Klaus.”

“I’m feeling generous.”

She nodded. It didn’t make up for years of mental torture but it felt like he was trying. Or, trying to try, anyway. It was a start. He left her alone in the foyer. Elijah came down later with two suitcases. They didn’t know where they were going but it was going to be far away from this town. They were washing their hands of it and trying to move forward towards a better life. 

Together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In another life, this would be the ending of this story. However, it's not the end. Because I have more chapters planned. And I also started rewatching The Originals. Season 1 is 90% Hayley and Elijah pining after each other. I forgot about that.


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Possible trigger warning: panic attacks

Azariah didn’t talk much for the first few hours of the trip. She just watched the scenery fly by them as Elijah drove down the highway. She didn’t know what to say. The last 48 hours had been filled with so much death. Blackmail. A little bit of torture. All of the things that made them monsters. God, she remembered when she feared the wolves. She thought they were murderers. Monsters. Just like she was now. She leaned her head against the back of the chair. What Elijah had said was true. They weren’t stronger together as a family. They lied and manipulated and they hurt each other in the end. They were everything that Esther said they were. They were everything that Finn hated.

She looked over at Elijah. He didn’t take his eyes off of the road. He was her rock. Even when she spent all that time alone, the thought that she might one day see Elijah again filled her with hope. It stopped her from doing much worse things than just kidnapping. And using her sister-in-law - were they even in-laws anymore - to threaten and potentially kill said hostage. She hoped that the two of them would find some kind of a happy medium. She took one of his hands into her lap just to keep him close. She was going to try her best to move forward. She didn’t want to think about all of the bad things. She wanted to focus on what she had now, right next to her.

Elijah drove until they reached Atlanta. Their car was almost out of gas and it seemed like as good a place to stop as any. It was better than Mystic Falls and it was far away from Klaus and Rebekah and probably Kol, too. Still, they let Rebekah know where they were. They didn’t want to be completely cut off from their family, they just… didn’t want to see them. Or to be seen by them, rather.

Riah compelled them a hotel suite somewhere nice. They got some help with their bags and they were in silence again. She didn’t know what to say to him. It was partially her fault that he had even considered using Rebekah’s hatred as a weapon. Azariah sat on the couch, unsure of what to do or say. She stared at her hands, clasped together in her lap. After far too long, she finally spoke.

“I’m sorry, Elijah,” she said. “Yesterday was a disaster and I-”

“You have nothing to apologise for, Azariah. I honestly wish that I felt more guilt than I do about what I did.” Elijah shook his head. He sat next to her and took her hands. He looked in her eyes. “And I would do it again for any one of you. You almost died, Riah.”

“So did you.”

Elijah put his hand on her cheek. “I won’t lose you again, Riah. Never again. I love you.”

“I love you, too, Elijah.”

Azariah looked at Elijah with a soft look in her eyes. She always felt calm when she looked into his eyes. He could make everything seem like it was going to be okay. Even with his siblings, he always made things seem good. It was one of the things she admired most about him. Riah kissed him. Elijah tangled his hands in her hair and brought her into his lap. Even after being in the car for hours, he still smelled so good. It wasn’t just his expensive cologne, it was _him_. Sweet and strong, like a spice of some kind mixed with citrus. He was familiar. He was hers. In his arms, she was home. There wasn’t another way to describe the feeling she had around him. None of what had happened in the last 48 hours mattered.

He slid his hands down her sides, resting at the base of her hips. The tips of his fingers met her skin. He hummed against her. Azariah rested her forehead against his. These were the moments she lived for. Elijah sighed in contentment.

“Finally, actually alone,” he smiled.

“And I’m breaking this off so I can take a shower,” she chuckled. “We’ve been on the road for a long time and I feel awful.”

Azariah stood up and walked to the bathroom with a little wave to Elijah as she went. She closed the bathroom door. Riah leaned against the counter. She stared at herself in the mirror. No blemishes. No scars. She could still feel Finn’s hands around her neck. The snapping of her bones. The heat of the fire. She closed her eyes and tried to forget it. She didn’t want to think about it. Any of it. Not while she was here. That was why she left Mystic Falls. So she could get away from what happened. Riah pushed herself away from the counter and turned on the shower. She started pacing while the water heated up.

No. She wasn’t going to picture Esther standing over her, chanting a spell that sapped the strength from her. The feeling of being human again washing over her. The fear of death. So weak. 

Riah fell back against the wall. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She held her hand over her chest and tried not to think about it. She took a deep breath. Everything was fine. She was fine. She had to be fine because that was what they did. Adapt and survive. She was still alive. She wasn’t going to die any time soon. 

Still, she couldn’t help but think about it. She couldn’t get it off of her mind. Her blood was pounding in her ears. Her heart thudded heavily. Her hands shook. Her fingers tingled. She had to get out of here, but she couldn’t leave. She walked backwards until she hit the door. Riah didn’t know how to get through this. Elijah opened the door. He instantly kneeled down next to her.

“Azariah?! Are you okay? What’s wrong?” He asked.

“I- I don’t- I’m not- I don’t know what’s happening to me,” she admitted. “I can’t stop it.”

She had fought in wars. Brought kings and dictators to their knees without a word. Survived for 500 years alone. And yet one night had knocked her down. One night made her feel so helpless and like she was broken. She wasn’t broken. She was an Original vampire. As far as she knew, there was _nothing_ more powerful than she was. Even Klaus was on the same level. She couldn’t die. She could get over whatever this was.

“I need to get out of here.” Riah stood up and walked to her suitcase. She pulled out a jacket and headed to the door. “I can’t stay here.”

Elijah started to follow her, catching the door before she could shut it. She didn’t even acknowledge him staying close behind her. Riah kept walking. She didn’t have a particular place in mind, but she couldn’t be in that hotel room a moment longer. Even just walking was taking her great effort. Finally, after about a mile, she stopped in an alley. The moon hung low in the sky, almost like it was taunting her. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. Most of all, she wanted to forget. Forget everything and start over. It made sense to her. Perhaps that was all that she needed to get rid of the hole in her heart. She’d always thought that it was there because she didn’t have Elijah. Well, now she had him and the hole was still there.

Azariah fell to the ground again. She didn’t care about the puddle she fell into, soaking her jeans with last night’s rain. Elijah kneeled next to her. He hesitated to touch her. It was like he was afraid that the simplest touch might shatter her. Riah was used to being strong. Anything else felt wrong.

“How can I help you, Riah?” Elijah spoke softly. “Please, tell me.”

She shook her head. There was no helping her. She would always remember that night. Her fear. The thought that she was really going to die. The flames that threatened her and gave Esther power.

“Just take me home.”

Neither of them knew where “home” was, so they settled for the suite. Elijah helped Riah get into the shower so she could wash off the soot and the dirt and maybe warm her up a little. It wasn’t the cold that was making her shiver so much. Vampires didn’t mind the weather. Still, he was trying. He even helped her into the bed, making sure she was tucked in tight. Elijah laid next to her with his legs stretched out and a book in one hand. The other was stroking her still damp hair. She stared blankly at the wall for a long time before the shivering stopped and she started to fell somewhat normal again.

Riah didn’t know how to explain what that was. She had never felt anything like it before. She didn’t know what she was going to do if it happened again. She was glad that it was only Elijah that had seen her like that. She didn’t like showing weakness of any kind. He was the only person that she truly trusted.

She fell asleep leaning against his chest and listening to his heart’s steady rhythm.

****

* * *

****

When Azariah woke up, Elijah was still next to her. He’d unbuttoned most of his shirt and his head was leaned back against the headboard. His eyes were closed, but she could tell from his breathing that he wasn’t sleeping. She wondered if he’d slept at all. As vampires, they really didn’t need _a lot_ of sleep, but Riah knew that Elijah had a tendency to put it off for as long as possible. Usually it was to get some kind of work done or to clean up one of Klaus’ messes. She used to force him into bed and stay until she was certain was actually sleeping.

Azariah, on the other hand, liked sleeping, whether it was because she was actually tired or needed to pass the time.

She reached up and brushed her thumb along his cheekbone. He looked peaceful regardless. His eyes opened and he looked over at her with a gentle smile.

“Good morning,” she said.

“Good _afternoon_ ,” Elijah corrected. “You’ve been asleep for almost 16 hours.”

“That’s… a long time,”

“You needed it. You had a panic attack.”

“A what now?”

“A panic attack. It’s only natural after what you went through.” Elijah pulled her into his lap.

She leaned her head against his shoulder. He was better to her than she deserved sometimes. Riah rolled out of his arms. She was determined to move past this as quickly as possible. They were in Atlanta. She’d never been there with anyone else before. She was going to make the most of it. First she needed to find some blood. She hadn’t had any since they left Mystic Falls and she was starting to feel a little dead. She called for room service and took some blood from the attendant. Just enough to satiate the hunger for a few hours. She hated him and compelled him to forget and got ready. Riah stood at the foot of the bed. Elijah was reading again.

“All right, Elijah Mikaelson. Let’s do something fun,” she grinned.

“Like what?” Elijah set his book aside with an amused smile on his face.

“How about a museum, hm? We can make fun of everything they’ve gotten wrong about the last thousand years.”

“I do recall that being a favourite pastime of yours. You badgered that poor man in France relentlessly for months.”

“And I’d do it again, given the chance!” Riah declared gleefully. “But for you, I’ll do so quietly and just for you so we don’t disturb the other patrons.”

“How noble.”

“Well, I _am_ learning from the best, after all.”

Azariah crawled across the bed towards him. Elijah crossed his arms behind his head and watched her every move. He was still wearing his clothes from the night before. He looked dishevelled. Riah liked seeing him this way. Orderly Elijah, proper Elijah, looking unkempt. She placed her hands on either side of his hips. Their faces were inches away from each other. She could hear every breath he took as he regarded her. She brought a hand to his cheek. For two days, he hadn’t shaved properly. He had dark stubble along his chin. He looked good. Elijah didn’t move a muscle while she inspected him. Riah wanted to remember every detail of his face. He wasn’t perfect, but to her he was. He always was.

She leaned forward, stopping just before their lips met. She inspected the curve of his lips as he fought back a smile. The sounds he made when she didn’t give him what he was expecting. The way his eyes followed her lips as she moved away from him. The slight pout. The gasp of disappointment. Oh, it was precious. Azariah gave in. 

She kissed him. It wasn’t a forever kiss. It wasn’t even their _best_ kiss. Her wrists had started to hurt from the awkward angle and holding her weight for as long as they had, but she didn’t care. She could still feel the butterflies in her stomach and the fire in her heart just from being close to him. Elijah took his hands from behind his head and wrapped them around her waist, drawing her in so close that her chest was crushed against his. Riah let her weight settle into him. She could always trust him to help her get lost, even if just for a moment. Just for this moment. 

Azariah pushed away from him.

“We need to leave now if we’re going to make it in prime museum hour,” she said, slightly mournful that she wasn’t staying near him.

“Prime museum hour?” Elijah raised an eyebrow.

“Yes. Prime museum hour. Just the right amount of patrons to help us stay unnoticed, yet not so many that we’ll be continuously annoyed or bothered, no matter which exhibit we go to.”

“You’ve had a lot of time to think about this.”

“I spent a lot of time in museums. Art museums, natural history museums, anything you can think of. I was a curator at the Smithsonian in 1873. Well, not publicly. They would’ve never allowed that back then. And it would have drawn too much attention.”

Elijah smiled. “All right, let me change and we’ll head out. Sound good?”

“Sounds perfect.”

She laid back to let him get off the bed. It never took Elijah too long to get ready, even with how nice all of his suits were. He went simple. Simple for him, anyway. White shirt, black jacket and pants with a tie to match. He looked handsome. Azariah held out her hand to him. He gladly took it and they started their trek. 

Atlanta looked a lot better in the daylight. And when Riah wasn’t struggling to breath and fighting back a scream while her vampire lover chased her. It was a weekday so most people were at work. They had the streets almost entirely to themselves. Azariah was doing everything she could to keep herself distracted shy of taking Elijah into an alley for some… fun. They walked into the museum, using a little compulsion - as a treat - to get in for free. 

She instantly headed towards the impressionist section. It was her favorite era of painting. Elijah trailed behind with a hand in his pocket, the other entwined with hers. Riah stopped in front of the paintings, reminiscing about the painters she had met and telling Elijah about the few that she had seen in progress. It was a different time, truly. Elijah smiled every time that she told him a new story. It was a part of her past that she didn’t mind remembering. The hours she would spend, sitting quietly while the smell of fresh paint wafted into the air, a glass or two or five always nearby. More often than not, she would play soft piano medleys when she was bored of waiting to see what the painting would look like. 

“You were the one who encouraged me to play in the first place. Something about it being proper for a lady,” Riah said.

“Proper for a lady in the company of a Count, I believe were my exact words. And I was right. His son always asked you to play something for him,” Elijah reminded her.

“Only because he was tired of the same two things you played constantly. Have your skills improved at all?”

“Greatly.”

“Ah, so it’s three songs now then.”

Elijah shook his head, but Riah could see that he was still smiling. They were both just happy to be there with each other. Elijah moved ahead and stopped at a smaller painting. It was uncredited, but he was entranced with it. Azariah leaned against him. It was of a man sitting alone on a bench, staring out towards the moonlight.

“Niklaus painted this,” Elijah said. “On the anniversary of the day you left us. He disappeared for the entire weekend. I didn’t know what he was doing until a decade later. I wondered where it had ended up.”

Azariah looked closer. She could see it. The little “NM” in the upper corner. It was integrated well with the scenery. 

“He probably didn’t even realise what day it was.”

“He missed you, too, Riah.”

“But he didn’t change during that time, did he? He wasn’t better and he didn’t stop hurting all of you.”

“New Orleans was the closest he ever got to being the man you wanted him to be,” Elijah said.

“Oh really?”

He nodded. “He adopted a boy there. Marcel. Fatherhood suited him, surprisingly.”

“Well, he did help raise Tatia’s son for a short while.”

“Marcel grew up too quickly for Klaus’s liking and he reverted quickly, but he wanted to find you, too, and bring you back to us.”

“Until he didn’t anymore.”

“Azariah, he’s our family. We are… bound to him, whether we like it or not.”

Azariah technically wasn’t. Not in the way Elijah was thinking of any way. As long as she was with Elijah, though, she needed to accept that Klaus, one way or another, was going to be in her life. Even now, he knew what city they were in. Riah wasn’t used to that. Klaus would be able to find her on a whim. And here she was, staring at a painting he had made, supposedly because he missed her. It was beautiful. Of course it was. Klaus was a fantastic artist. He always had been. It was one of those things that just came naturally to him. 

She eventually pulled him away. She didn’t want to get caught up on the same painting, even if it was from Klaus. They were walking towards the surrealist movement when she saw him. Finn. tt had to be. Same height. Same hair colour. Same build. It was Finn. Somehow they had found him. Or he had found them. Riah stopped dead in her tracks. If he was here, Esther was here. Esther couldn’t be here. No. Elijah took her hand. 

The person turned around. It wasn’t Finn. But… he still looked exactly like Finn, but not. It was hard to describe. His features were… softer than Finn’s. And his eyes were green, not brown. He wasn’t Finn. This person’s presence gave her a sense of… ease? He was leading a small group through the museum. Once she realised that he wasn’t Finn and that meant that Esther wasn’t here. She could relax. She took a deep breath.

It had been enough to ruin the mood. She didn’t feel like going to anymore museums. She just wanted to go back to the hotel and sleep. Riah wanted to apologise to Elijah, but she didn’t know how to say it to him. _Sorry that I thought my psychopathic ex-husband who just so happens to be your brother was at this museum and I can’t stop having flashbacks to the weakest I have ever felt in my life?_ It was a lot to work through and she just wanted to go to sleep. For a long time.

They got back to the hotel suite and Riah sat on one of the couches. She looked at the floor for a long time. For the first time in a long time, she had felt complete. No holes, no longing for some unknown thing. She couldn’t explain it to herself.

“I’m sorry that I cut our first actual date short,” she sighed. 

“You have nothing to apologise for, Riah.” Elijah sat next to her. “It hasn’t been that long since Esther took you. It’s only natural that you’re seeing things.”

“I don’t think I was, Elijah. I mean, you saw that man. He looked _exactly_ like Finn.”

“Not exactly like him. And it’s not as unlikely as you’d think. You should get some rest, Azariah.”

“Elijah…” she shook her head. How could she tell him about what she had felt when she saw that man? He wouldn’t understand. “Nevermind. You’re right. Thank you for indulging me today.”

He kissed her. Riah had wanted to ask him if he thought she was going crazy. A part of her was starting to think so. She laid back in the bed. It was still light out. Elijah was off in one of the other rooms. She laid back in the pillows, trying to be comfortable. Why had he looked so much like Finn? Was she really just seeing things? That had to be it. Right? There wasn’t any other explanation. She was just being more paranoid than usual. Riah closed her eyes and regulated her breathing. Eventually, she drifted to sleep.

****

* * *

****

“Where is he, Esther?!” Azariah demanded.

She rounded on the witch. He was missing. It was Esther’s fault, she just knew it. Without thinking, she drew a sword and pointed it at Esther’s throat. Esther held up her hands but she had a dead look in her eyes.

“Azariah-”

“Where is he?! What did you do to him?!”

“He’s gone!” Esther said. “And he won’t be coming back.”

Riah’s eyes filled with tears. She screamed as she moved to run the blade across Esther’s throat. It was deflected. Finn pulled her away from Esther. His arm was around her waist. He was trying to make her feel better. Riah appreciated the thought. He was clenching his teeth. He turned to face his mother.

“What did you do?” He asked firmly.

“Nothing, Finn. _I_ didn’t do anything.”

****

* * *

****

Riah woke with a start. What the hell was that? That didn’t feel like a dream. It wasn’t a memory, either. She pulled her knees up to her chest. She’d never threatened Esther like that. It wasn’t something she would have ever done when she was a human. And Finn definitely never stood up for her. Not against Esther definitely. Was it just some weird dream because of what they saw at the museum? That had to be it. She was still rattled. That was all.

Azariah wasn’t naive. She knew that wasn’t true. Of course she knew that wasn’t true. That person out there. There had to be some connection between that and the dream. She needed to find the truth. 

She got out of bed. There was only one way that she was going to get to the bottom of this. She had to find… Esther. She was in Riah’s dream. She would know what was happening. Oh, Azariah hated that the thought had even crossed her mind because she knew that it was the only option. She was going to have to find Esther and hope that she wouldn’t have another panic attack or be killed. Elijah wasn’t going to like it. It was more important that she figure this out. She knew that he wasn’t going to be happy with her, but she had to do this. She was going to put her foot down and go. And she was going to go alone. 

Riah walked out to the main room. She was shocked to see Klaus standing there nonchalantly. 

“Ah, Riah! So glad you could join us. I have a small favour to ask of you,” he said.

She narrowed her eyes. “What kind of a favour?”

“I need your blood. I’ve found a witch to undo the bond on us all. We’re going to need everyone’s blood to do so.”

“Is that all?”

“Yes. You and Elijah are the only two left.”

“Finn gave you his blood? Willingly?”

“Of course he did. I just asked nicely.”

“Doubtful. If that’s all you need…” She stopped. Klaus knew where Finn was, then, and Finn would know where Esther was. “Is Finn in Mystic Falls?” Riah asked finally.

Elijah looked shocked to hear the words leave her mouth. She crossed her arms and looked only at Klaus. Klaus raised an eyebrow.

“He is. Why?”

“I need to talk to him.”

“About what?” 

“We’re not that close, Niklaus. But I’m going to Mystic Falls.”

“Done with your little love tour already?”

“No. But I need to talk to Finn.”

Klaus shrugged. “Fine. I’m leaving in 20 minutes. Will you be joining me?”

She nodded. Klaus headed out the door and left Riah and Elijah alone. She turned to face him apologetically.

“I won’t be gone more than a week,” she promised. “But I need to do this alone, Elijah.”

“What’s going on, Riah?” He asked. 

She took his hands in her own, gazing up at him. “I had a strange dream and I think it was telling me that I need to find Esther.”

“What?!”

“I’m not going to do anything dangerous, I swear. She’s powerless without the Bennett witchline. She can’t hurt me like that again. She can’t hurt any of us. But I need answers, Elijah. I will call you everyday. And when I come back, we’ll have an actual decent date. No interruptions, just the two of us. Okay?”

He sighed. “Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mmmm gotta talk to Finn


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm listening to Josh Groban's cover of _Evermore_ and it might actually move me to tears like OH. OH he can sing. Anyway, I meant to post this chapter today (technically yesterday) so there might be two chapters within the next 24 hours or so. I haven't decided yet :p

Azariah knew what she needed to do. Thankfully, she got Klaus to stop asking questions before they got to Mystic Falls. She really didn’t feel like trying to explain anything when she wasn’t even sure what she was going to do. She didn’t know what, exactly, she was going to ask Esther. She didn’t even trust that Esther would tell her everything, but she needed to know something about all of this. She’d lived long enough to know that dreams like that weren’t to be ignored. When they felt _that_ real, it was usually some kind of a sign or a warning. She dreaded to think of what it could be telling her. 

Her first stop in Mystic Falls was apparently the Mystic Grill. She was fully aware of the strange irony of it always seeming to be the first place she went to in this damn town. But, Klaus had assured her that that was where Finn was. Riah didn’t really have a reason to believe that Klaus was lying to her so she went. Even if he was, she’d be able to find Finn on her own. It wasn’t like he had that many places to go and people were bound to notice an Original vampire running around. If all else failed, she could always ask one of Elena’s friends. They always seemed to know where the Originals were in Mystic Falls.

She stepped inside the bar. It was filled with the usual raucous crowd. There were people drinking to forget their problems, people drinking because it was fun, and people drinking because there wasn’t anything else to do in this town. It was quite the collection of folk. Riah looked to the bar. Stefan was sitting there. He had a drink in his hand but he wasn’t looking at it. Azariah followed his gaze. Right to Finn. 

And Sage, looking the same as ever with flaming red hair and dark clothes.

Klaus had failed to mention that little tidbit. Now it was starting to make sense. That was why Finn was being cooperative with his brother. Finn and Sage threw their heads back as they took a shot. Azariah bit back the small amount of jealousy she still felt and she walked towards them. She ignored everyone else. Stefan’s eyes followed her and she didn’t say anything. He probably hadn’t been expecting for her to come back. She hadn’t been expecting it either. Riah took a few deep breaths to lower her heart rate. She didn’t want to admit it, but just seeing Finn was making her panic a little. She could feel the vervain needle in her neck. She never wanted to go through that again. But she needed to talk to Finn, regardless of what he had done and who he was with. She pulled a chair up to their table, sitting with her legs crossed.

“Hi, Finn,” Riah said. “We need to talk.”

Finn clenched his teeth. Sage got up to move or run away or something else, but Riah grabbed her arm and made her sit back down. Sage wasn’t getting away that easy. Azariah didn’t have any intentions of killing Sage. That didn’t mean that she couldn’t have a little fun with this situation. She clicked her tongue and shook her head.

“It’s rude to leave a conversation, Sage. Stay a while.” 

“What do you want, Riah?” Finn asked.

“Where’s Esther?”

“Why would I tell you that?”

“Because you owe me. Did you forget that you tried to kill me a week ago?” Azariah put an arm around Sage’s shoulders. “And you don’t have to worry about that _promise_ I made you. I’m sorry about that.” Finn looked at her skeptically. “I need to find Esther. Please, Finn. I’m asking nicely because I want to put the past behind us. Somewhat. Do you know where she is?”

“I don’t. I’m sorry, Riah. About everything.”

Riah grabbed one of the shots and downed it easily. “You’d better be. Can you help me find her?”

Finn took a deep breath. “I’ll try.”

Riah leaned back in her chair and let out the breath she didn’t know she’d been holding. That was one thing done. It was only going to get more difficult moving forward. She knew that. She really wasn’t looking forward to seeing Esther. She could do this. She just needed to keep on breathing. Finn shuffled awkwardly in his seat, staring at his empty shot glass. It seemed like he had something to say, but he wasn’t quite sure how to phrase it. She didn’t really feel like listening to a half assed apology for trying to have her killed. 

Sage clapped as the server came by with shots and limes. Azariah could smell that it was tequila. She wrinkled her nose instinctively. Yes, she was a vampire with an incredibly high tolerance, but she’d had her bad experiences with tequila. She’d done some dumb things when tequila drunk. Sage put one glass in front of all of them.

“Well, I for one am glad to bury the hatchet,” she said.

Azariah picked her shot up, inspecting the clear liquid. Oh, this was not going to be fun. Finn started to put his glass to his lips. Sage stopped him, grinning.

“You've never had tequila before?” she asked.

He shook his head. Sage took his wrist and poured salt on his skin. She did the same to herself, licking it off and shooting the tequila back quickly. Riah followed. Finn looked at them both skeptically before doing the same. He scrunched his face at the taste. It was acquired. He set the shot glass down and looked at Sage pointedly.

“Happy now?”

Sage gave him a lime and he started to suck on it.

“Okay, just because I’m not going to hold grudges against either of you for now doesn’t mean that I want to see _that.”_ Riah said.

Finn wiped his mouth and drank some water. “I am truly awed by the evolution of mankind.”

“If you’re impressed by tequila, you should try bowling.” 

Finn looked at Riah curiously. Sage laughed. At least one of them was having a good time. Riah pushed her glass away from her. She had never, ever expected to be doing shots with her ex-husband and his mistress from 900 years ago. She could cross that off her bucket list, she supposed. If she had one about the most awkward situations she could possibly get herself into. God, how much longer were they going to stay there? A part of her had presumed that they would just immediately get to finding Esther. She had forgotten how… persistent Sage could be. She should have been more sympathetic to their plight. After all, she knew what it was like to be separated from the one you loved for centuries. Still, it was _Sage_.

A man walked by their table. Sage greeted him as he moved past. He nodded at Finn and Azariah and continued on. Riah raised an eyebrow. Finn turned to face Sage.

“You know him?” he asked.

“I turned him,” Sage said.

Riah hid her smile behind a glass. This was going to be a brilliant conversation. She was a little happier that she had stayed for this bit. Finn looked at Sage incredulously. 

“You _turned_ him? Why?”

“Because I'm in enemy territory. When your brother and sister called, I thought I might need a little back up. You can't trust anyone here.” Sage grabbed Matt’s wrist as he walked up to them. “Three more tequilas?”

“Yeah, cool, I’ll let your waitress know.”

Matt walked away and Finn started to argue with Sage about turning people. Azariah watched Matt and Stefan make some kind of exchange at the bar. She narrowed her eyes and turned away. She wouldn’t be able to hear anything with all the people that were there and there was no need to let them know that she was watching them closely. Of course she was. She had been a part of a plot to kill Elena and had almost killed Jenna once. They were bound to want some kind of revenge. And the Originals were, as far as she knew, still linked. Klaus would more than likely call to tell her of his great success, as he was wont to do.

“Don’t judge me,” Sage said. “ _You_ turned _me_.”

“Exactly, Sage. I turned you. I let my passion take over my morals.”

The idea of Finn having any kind of passion besides chasing his own death was hilarious to Riah. They continued their arguing until the waitress came back with the drinks. They both huffed and went to take shots and make up. Riah stopped them. She dipped a finger into the shot in front of her. Her skin burned. She looked to the bar. Stefan was gone. Matt, too. She growled.

“Vervain.” She stood up. “C’mon, then. It would seem we’re being attacked.”

Sage and Finn both got up. Riah raised her eyebrow again. He nodded. The three of them headed outside. Almost instantly, Stefan was attacking Finn. Riah grabbed the young vampire’s arm and snapped it. The stake fell from his hands down the stairs. Sage called out. Riah felt an irrational fear towards it and she knew. It was a White Oak stake. Somehow, they had gotten their hands on one and now they wanted to kill an Original while they were all still linked. Finn ran down the stairs to grab it. Riah kneed Stefan in the stomach.

Sage just barely stopped a crossbow bolt from being shot into Riah’s stomach. Finn tossed the White Oak stake to Riah. She stabbed it into Stefan’s back, missing his heart by just barely an inch. She pulled him close to her chest and looked into Elena’s eyes. Elena looked between the three of them. The side door opened. Matt was holding another stake. Finn took it from him and pushed him towards Elena.

“Pity. I really did feel sorry for what happened, Elena.” Riah pushed the stake through Stefan’s chest, the tip bloodied and ripping through his shirt. He was lucky she intentionally missed his heart. Stefan groaned, gasping for air. “But you were trying to get my family killed. And here you all are, trying it a second time. I thought that you were different, Elena. Compassionate. And maybe you are, still, somewhere, but this,” she ripped the stake from Stefan’s chest and let him fall to the ground, “is foolish. Tell me, Elena. Do you really think that Klaus will leave the others here alone when he hears about what you just tried to do? _You’re_ the only one he cares about. Were you hoping that he’d be dead, too? All of us? And Elijah actually felt sorry for what we’d done. I’ll be sure to let him know you tried to kill him. Again.”

She gestured for Finn and Sage to follow her. They stepped over Stefan. Matt and Elena looked at them nervously. As they should have. They were just humans and their only weapons were now in the possession of the people they were trying to kill. When they were across the street, Sage hugged Finn again, whispering about how she had almost lost him again. Finn walked to Riah.

“You saved my life, Azzie. Why?” 

“Because I don’t hate _you_ , Finn. I never did. After all, my reaction to your affair was to grin and bear it and then to later sleep with your brother. So there’s that. And you _did_ try to kill me, which I hate, and I don’t forgive you, but I don’t hate you. I hate Esther. All of these things that have happened to us come back to Esther. If you actually wanted me dead now, you have the tool to do it.”

Finn looked at the stake in his hand. He gave it to her. “Take it. Now, let’s go find Mother, shall we?”


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad we can agree that Finn is a smol bean that we have to protect.

Finn took Azariah to the last place that he had seen Esther. He wasn’t keeping contact with her anymore. He had Sage. He took her to the old witch house. Riah stopped outside. The ground was still scorched. She stood in the circle. Her heart pounded against her chest. She took deep breaths. She didn’t have time to get stuck in the past now. She had to find Esther. She kicked the soot and headed inside. It was empty. Even more so than it had been in the past. She headed to the basement, stopping by a dried pool of blood on the first floor. Where Damon turned Abby. A lot of bad things happened that night. It had to happen so she could survive.

She went into the basement. Finn stayed outside with Sage. Riah needed to do this alone. She didn’t want either of them there to see what she might do. How she might react. Riah saw Esther standing there, staring into the empty fireplace. She was kneeling in the darkness. Riah didn’t have to announce her presence. Esther stood but didn’t turn to face her. She kept her eyes fixed on the ashes. 

“Azariah. I’ve been expecting you. You’re late,” she said.

“And now I’m here. Why?” Riah asked.

“I was hoping that you could tell me.”

“I met someone. He looks identical to Finn. That same day, I had a dream. About you, which I hate. And, surprisingly, Finn. Standing up to you. I want to know why.”

Esther took a deep breath. For once, she looked like she was losing her composure. She was actually nervous. Now, that intrigued Riah. Nothing had ever seemed to rattle Esther in the past. Riah paced slowly. She knew that she was close to her answers. It didn’t look like Esther was going to give answers easily. She never had in the past. Esther walked towards Riah. Riah took a step back. She didn’t trust Esther. Not for a second. Even if she wasn’t as powerful as she used to be, she was still a witch.

“There are things that you have forgotten, my child. Things that have been taken from you,” Esther began. 

“Who took them? You, I presume.”

Esther nodded. “With the help of the witch Ayana.”

“I want it back. Now.”

“Who are you to make demands? A monster deserves _nothing_ from me.”

“Mother.” Finn’s voice broke through. “Please.”

Esther’s gaze softened as Finn came downstairs. He stood next to Azariah and he took her hand. Riah looked down at their clasped hands, intertwining her fingers with his. She didn’t know why. She should have pushed him away after everything he had done but it felt like the right thing to do.

Esther shook her head. “You don’t understand what you are asking of me.”

“Return what you have taken from us,” Finn said.

The words echoed in Riah’s head. Esther held out her hands, chanting softly. Riah cried out as her head started to pound. It felt like something was breaking through her skull. A wall shattered. She and Finn both fell to the ground and Esther walked over them without another word.

**_997_ **

Riah knew fairly quickly after the first time the smell of the dried herbs made her feel sick. She didn’t even have to perform the spell to know for sure. There wasn’t any denying it. She was with child.

A million thoughts ran through her head. She didn’t know how to feel about this. She didn’t know how Finn was going to react. They hadn’t been actively trying for children, both of them wanting to put it off for as long as possible for their own reasons. She bit her thumb as she tried to process it. Pregnant. It was supposed to be an honour to bear children for a strong man. It was supposed to be a good thing, her duty as a wife. There were those in the village that had expected this to happen much sooner. She’d been married for an entire year and was only now having her first child. If not for the dangers they all faced in this place, it could even be considered a scandal. She’d been comforted more than once by other women in the village. There were whispers that she was unable to bear children. All of that would stop now.

Of course, she would have to tell Finn, first. Then they would tell the rest of the family. Riah watched Elijah walk across the village with a pile of firewood under his arm. He would know soon, too. They already had a strained relationship. This would be certain to destroy it entirely and cement the fact that she was another man’s wife. His _brother’s_ wife.

Azariah waited until that night to finally tell Finn. As the words left her mouth, he sat in silence. After a moment he stood and embraced her with a smile. She was shocked by this display of affection. Even more so when she heard him laugh. Finn kissed Riah, holding her close against him. When he pulled away, he kept one hand on her stomach where their child was slowly growing.

“A child of our own,” he grinned. “This is a blessing, Azzie. Thank you.”

“It takes two people,” she joked.

Finn wanted to tell everyone that night, but Azariah insisted that they wait until the morning. She wanted just a few more hours before she truly gave herself to Finn for the rest of her life. She knew that she should have done so the day that she took her vows, but she’d been holding back. No more. She needed to move forward. Finn made her sit down while he focused on trying to make dinner. It was sweet. She watched him move around their humble home. He was a good man. He was kind. He deserved her full attention. He always had. Riah knew that she could love him. She just had to give him a chance.

They gathered the family in the morning and gave them the news. Esther was overjoyed. Rebekah, too. She was looking forward to having the chance to take care of someone other than her brothers. Niklaus wasn’t excited, Kol really didn’t care, and Elijah… her dear Elijah didn’t say anything. He didn’t even look at her. Riah bit her tongue and refused to let herself get hurt. She needed to be excited for herself now. She was starting a family. She needed to focus on that.

She was still right about one thing. This child solidified the end of her relationship with Elijah. She needed to keep it together. For Finn and for their child.

****

* * *

****

Azariah sighed heavily, a hand on her lower back. She hadn’t expected all of this pain to come with being pregnant. She did her best to ignore it, but when she was alone it was hard. She leaned against one of the trees and took a breath. The baby was due any day now. Ayana had predicted the late summer. She was certain. Riah was certain that she wanted this to be over with. It was awkward and uncomfortable and she didn’t like a single moment of it.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Since she had become pregnant, Finn had been quite the doting husband. He was loving and did anything he could to help her. It filled her heart. She hadn’t realised how much she had longed for that affection from him. Now that she had it, she knew that she didn’t want to lose it. They had become so much closer. She was actually starting to feel like a wife, not like a burden. She loved it. She loved _him_. It wasn’t the passionate, burning love that she had felt for Elijah. It was soft and pure. It was more than enough for her. It was all that she needed to know that she could be happy with Finn. That was what she needed in the end. Happiness.

****

* * *

****

She was exhausted. She didn’t know that people could be so tired, but she had done it. She’d given birth to a healthy baby boy. She held him in her arms and she felt at peace. Her son. He had cried so much when he was first born. It broke her heart to hear his cries. She wanted to keep him safe forever. Finn sat next to her. He had a soft smile on his face that hadn’t left for hours now. Riah leaned back against the bed and closed her eyes. She was truly happy. She reached for Finn’s hand. He brought it to his lips.

“What should we name him?” Finn asked.

“I was thinking… what about Erik?” 

“Erik. A good name.”

Finn pressed a kiss to her temple and left to get her some water.

****

* * *

****

“Where is he, Esther?!” Azariah demanded.

She rounded on the witch. He was missing. Erik was missing. He was only two years old. It was Esther’s fault, she just knew it. Riah had trusted Esther with her son. She should have known better. Without thinking, she drew a sword and pointed it at Esther’s throat. Esther held up her hands but she had a dead look in her eyes. It was almost as if she didn’t even care.

“Azariah-”

“Where is he?! What did you do to him?!”

“He’s gone!” Esther said. “And he won’t be coming back.”

Riah’s eyes filled with tears. She screamed as she moved to run the blade across Esther’s throat. It was deflected. Finn pulled her away from Esther. His arm was around her waist. He was trying to make her feel better. Riah appreciated the thought. He was clenching his teeth. He turned to face his mother.

“What did you do?” He asked firmly.

“Nothing, Finn. _I_ didn’t do anything.”

“Where is my son?!” Finn demanded.

“He’s gone, Finn. He was taken.”

“By who?”

“I…” Esther hesitated. “I can’t… I don’t know.”

Riah dropped to her knees. Gone? Taken? How could that happen? Where was he? He couldn’t be gone. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be possible. Erik still had to be out there. He wasn’t gone. No. Finn pulled her to his side, making promises that he couldn’t keep. Promises to find her son and bring him home. She wanted to believe that he could but she had already lost enough people to know that those promises couldn't be kept.

She didn’t know how to function anymore. She didn’t know what to do. The whole family looked for Erik for weeks. There was no sign of him. Not even of anyone taking him. To Azariah it was obvious that Esther had something to do with it all. She constantly insisted that she didn’t, but Riah knew better than that. But she couldn’t do anything about it. She could barely even move to get out of bed. She had lost so much. Too much. She didn’t know how to continue on.

**_2010_ **

Azariah rose with more difficulty than she would have thought. Her head was still pounding. 1,000 years of having repressed memories could do that, apparently. She helped Finn to his feet. Her son. She had a son. The knowledge almost filled the hole that had been in her heart for so long. She knew the truth now. So then that man at the museum… it had to be a relative, then. And for some reason, the witches had given her that vision so she could get her memories back. But why?

She remembered Ayana trying to tell her something once. It was back when Azariah had first started to notice that empty feeling. Her magic had been affected so she went to Ayana for help. Ayana had started to say something but they were interrupted by Klaus yelling at Elijah. Had this been what she was going to tell her. Could it have been Ayana that sent her that vision?

Esther stood up and looked at them both. “I have restored your memories.”

“What did you do to our son?!” Riah asked. “Why was there a need to take them away in the first place?!”

“ _I_ did nothing to your son. I would never have harmed him.”

“Then why? Why take our memories away?” Finn asked.

“Azariah was depressed. She was dying. I begged Ayana for her help taking away Azariah’s pain. The only way to ensure that the walls stayed up was for the village’s memories of Erik to be taken away. I did it to keep you alive, Azariah.”

“You did it because you would rather push away the difficult things than admit what you did.” Riah clenched her fists. “I don’t care. It was over a thousand years ago and we can’t change it. You’ll get what’s coming to you, Esther. Whether by the hands of your children or some other means, you will die. When you’re on the Other Side, I hope that you have the same punishment as you did before. And I will personally ensure plenty of pain for you to endure for this.”

She turned on her heel and walked away. Finn was close behind. He couldn’t believe that his mother could have taken something like that from him. He couldn’t believe that he’d ever had a child. Riah was lost. She no longer felt broken, but she wasn’t quite whole, either. She had family out there. Blood family. She had to find that man again. If she was lucky, he’d still be in Atlanta. She’d go back to that museum every day if she had to. She needed to talk to him. Maybe he’d be able to shed some light on her family. Maybe there were more of them out there and she could… well, she didn’t know. It was hard to explain. She craved family. All of them had for such a long time. Now she knew that she had it. Somehow, Erik had survived being taken. He had been alive.

Finn shook his head. “A son. We really had a child.”

“We did. He was… everything. And… well, we may have distant relatives, too. In Atlanta. That’s what started all of this. Elijah and I were at a museum and I saw someone that looked like you there. That was the night I had a dream. Well, now I guess it was more of a flashback. That’s why I wanted to confront Esther. I never imagined it could be… this.”

“We have to go talk to him.”

“I was going to ask if you wanted to go with me.” Riah held out a hand to Finn. “To Atlanta, then?”

“Wait. Before we go, I need to apologise-”

“Finn, you don’t-”

“I do. I was angry with you all. I still am. You all left me in that box for centuries.”

“I’m so sorry, Finn.”

“You don’t know all of it. The magic of the dagger started to wear off after a few centuries. I regained consciousness, but I couldn’t move my body. It was torture. And I heard your apology from the night you ran away. Then again when you finally pulled the dagger from my chest.”

Azariah flushed red. She had said some not so great things. And it sank in. Finn had been conscious for over 500 years. She held a hand to her mouth. 

“Oh my god, Finn. You were- no!” 

She ran forward and hugged him. Finn was shocked. To be honest, Riah was, too. She wasn’t sure what had come over her. She just knew that she needed to comfort him. There weren’t any words to apologise for something like that. She couldn’t even begin what it felt like to be trapped in her own body. Stuck in darkness. Hearing his family talking and enjoying themselves while he stayed stuck. She wrapped her arms around him tightly.

“Let’s go to Atlanta, Finn. Let’s find this kid and talk to him, okay?”

Finn nodded and they left.


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're getting close to the end of Season 3 of TVD. That means we're approaching season 1 of TO very quickly friends.

Azariah was nervous. She’d called Elijah that same night and asked him to find that man from the museum. Elijah didn’t ask questions, thankfully, She promised that she would explain everything as soon as she could. She needed those answers herself first. She sat silently with Finn. She rubbed her palms against her jeans. She didn’t know why this was so nerve wracking. Even if this person was a relative, it’s not like he would have any idea who she was. She was hoping to play the angle of a long lost relative. Maybe a cousin or an aunt. She hoped that would be enough to introduce her to the rest of the family.

She also knew that she had to make sure that Niklaus _never_ found out about this. She was only defensive around him now. Riah knew that he had the daggers and that he was willing to use them against his family. She had white oak stakes in her car to retaliate if she needed. But if Klaus knew that she had a weakness like this, he wouldn’t hesitate to wipe them all out without a second thought. She knew that. He had done it before. It wouldn’t matter if it was someone he considered family or not. Klaus was sadistic.

Finn pointed. “There he is.”

“Let’s go.”

Riah stood up and started walking towards him. Finn watched the man walk past them in awe. He really did look _just_ like Finn. Some colour contacts and it would be like they were twins. Of course, when she listened to this man speak, he didn’t have an English accent. It sounded more like he was from the midwest. Riah stopped in her tracks when she saw him lean down close to a girl standing by a painting. He whispered something in her ear and the two of them walked off. Azariah raised an eyebrow. Without a word, she turned to follow them. She could hear hushed voices behind a nearby door. Employees only.

She had always seen those signs as more of a suggestion anyway.

She pushed open the door. Riah was shocked to see the man biting down on the woman’s neck, blood running down her dark skin and staining her blouse. She stood completely still, unable to move or make a sound. Compelled to stay in one place while a vampire fed on her. Riah watched in shock. She hadn’t been expecting that. She stood in the doorframe in awe.

The man pulled away from the woman’s neck. His eyes locked with Azariah’s. He looked between his victim and Riah. He held up his hands defensively.

“I can explain this-”

“No need.” Riah allowed herself to lose control for a moment. Just long enough to show the veins under her eyes. “I’m a vampire, too. This is my friend, Finn. My name is Riah. We were hoping that we could talk.”

He looked skeptically at her outstretched hand. Hesitantly, he took it. “Erik.”

Azariah’s eyes widened. No. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be. Erik was a common name. It could be a coincidence. She couldn’t treat him like he was her son. She had to keep up the idea that he was a distance relative. That was the only way that she was going to get through this. She didn’t even know if it was true. No. It couldn’t be true. Her son had died a long time ago. This was just a simple meeting. She needed to remain calm. Finn shook Erik’s hand. His face gave away nothing. Erik healed the woman he drank from, compelling her to forget before sending her on her way. Finn looked away. He didn’t have as much of a handle on his hunger as some of the others did.

The three of them went to a coffee shop. For a while, they didn’t say anything of importance. Riah was trying to figure out how to broach the topic, especially now that she knew his name. It had to be a coincidence. That’s what she kept telling herself as she watched him. The longer that she did, however, the less she could deny just how similar he truly was to the two of them. From the way that he took his coffee (two sugars and a splash of cream, just like Riah) to the way he held himself as he drank it. His mannerisms were so similar to theirs. It didn’t seem likely, given how young Erik had been when he disappeared, but it was shaping up to look like he was their son. Alive now in the 21st century.

She needed to just get it over with. She needed to ask questions and figure things out for herself.

Riah took a deep breath. “Erik, how old are you?”

“Excuse me?” Erik chuckled. “That’s a rather forward question.”

“Please, just answer it.”

“Honestly? I don’t know. I don’t know a lot about myself before I was turned into a vampire.”

“And when was that?”

“Mmm… 1200 something? I wasn’t really keeping track of time. I was… running from something and I ran into this guy. A few weeks later, he turned me.”

1200 something. So then he couldn’t be her son. Erik would’ve been dead by then. There was no doubt about it. Unless… there were too many variables about this. It was insane. She didn’t like how uncertain all of this was becoming. 

“1200? You’re certain?”

Erik nodded. “Yeah. There’s fragments of my memory. Mostly, I remember sleeping. Someone woke me up and told me to run so I did. For 20 years. Everything was different than I remembered. It was like I was out of time.”

“Out of time…” Riah murmured and narrowed her eyes. “And what of your parents?” 

“Abandoned me when I was born. That’s what I was always told.”

“What if they didn’t abandon you? What if you were taken from them?” Finn asked.

Finn was being much more straightforward. He was more desperate to learn the truth that Riah was. She hadn’t seen it before. His desire. Finn had longed to be a father when they were human. Riah knew that. After their memories were stolen, it was one of the reasons they had grown apart. Erik had truly been the glue holding their relationship together. When he was taken and they subsequently forgot about him, it all fell apart. Finn wanted to know who his son had become without him. Azariah didn’t know how she had missed it.

She took his hand under the table. She couldn’t deny it any longer. She knew in her heart that the man in front of her was Erik Mikaelson, her first and only child. In the end, she didn’t _need_ to know how he had survived so long before he became a vampire. She knew that this was her son in the same way that Finn did. 

“Then I’d ask why they never look for me,” Erik said. He looked between Riah and Finn, both of them staring at him earnestly. “So why didn’t you? That’s why you’re here, right? Because you’re my parents.”

“We didn’t look because we didn’t know you existed. Our memories were taken from us. Please, Erik, you-”

“Enough!” Erik pushed away from the table. Droplets of coffee spilled on the table. “I know who you are. Both of you. Finn and Azariah Mikaelson, Original Vampires. I don’t care beyond that. As far as I’m concerned, my parents are _dead_. They left me behind. I’ve survived on my own for this long. I don’t need you to suddenly decide that you want to be parents. I’m hardly a child in need of his mommy and daddy. I’d prefer it if we didn’t meet again.”

Erik left without saying anything else and Riah had no choice but to watch him go. Finn and Riah were both left sitting there in silence. They didn’t know what to do. They didn’t know what to say. It didn’t seem like there was anything _to_ say. Azariah’s heart was breaking all over again. She was losing her child again. It was hard. She knew that she was going to honour Erik’s wishes. She would leave him alone. She wouldn’t ever try to find him again.

She’d leave Atlanta as soon as possible, too. She stood up, dropping some bills on the table before she left the shop. Riah would do what she always did. She could avoid thinking about it since she was never going to see him again anyway. She would go back to that simple time when she didn’t even know that Erik existed in any capacity. She didn’t even know that this Erik _was_ her son anyway. All she had was a gut feeling. That wasn’t nearly enough. 

Finn caught up to her, grabbing her hand to make her stop.

“Azzie, you have to talk about this,” Finn insisted.

“I don’t _have_ to do anything. He’s made himself clear, Finn. He doesn’t care about us. We need to move forward,” Riah said. She started walking away again, waving away his words. “There’s really no point in dwelling on it now. You should go back to Sage and forget about all of this. That’s what I’m planning on doing. Moving forward. Never looking back.”

“You know that’s not what-”

“I think Sage is at the hotel with Elijah. We should go back there now.”

“Azzie, stop!” Finn moved in front of her. He took her shoulders and looked down at her. “You can’t just keep pushing these things away.”

“I’m not pushing anything away, Finn. I’m simply stating the truth. Erik doesn’t want anything to do with us and so we shouldn’t keep worrying about it.”

“I’m not worried about Erik, I’m worried about _you_. I could hear your heartbeat while you were with Esther. That was fear. And when you saw Erik and realised who he was, it was excitement. You want a relationship with him. You should talk, please.”

“I can’t!” Riah finally shouted. “I can’t talk about it because then I have to feel it and I’ll go down a dark path. This isn’t the first time I’ve been overwhelmed, Finn. Trust me, it’s not a pretty sight. People die. Leave it alone.”

“Azzie-”

“Let’s go, Finn.”

She hoped that her tone of voice was obvious that she wasn’t going to talk about any of this anymore. Riah had been alive a lot longer than Finn had. She had seen and done things that she regretted. Things she hated. She knew that it wasn’t a good idea for her to focus too much on Erik leaving. She never should have gotten her hopes up in the first place. She knew better. It never ended well for any of her family members.

Riah drove to the hotel in silence. Finn had stopped trying to get her to talk about it. She had made her position on it very clear. They got out and headed into the suite. Elijah was sitting with his legs crossed on the couch. He had a cup of tea on the table next to him and a book in hand. Sage was inspecting the booze. Naturally. When Elijah heard the door open, he was instantly on his feet and walking over to her. Azariah walked right past him to set her coat across the back of a chair. Finn went to Sage.

“What happened?” Elijah asked. “How was the meeting?”

“He’s our son,” Finn said.

“What?!” Sage and Elijah spoke at the same time, looking at their respective partners incredulously.

“I think I would remember if Riah had been pregnant,” Elijah said.

“He was taken as a child. Apparently, I was so distraught that Esther and Ayana took it upon themselves to remove the memories of Erik, my son, from everyone’s minds. And none of that matters now, anyway. He’s made himself clear. He wants us to leave him alone,” Riah said, shaking her head. “We should probably leave the city soon. Erik was fairly clear on his stance. Besides, others might start to get nervous if three Originals are in the same city for too long.”

She started to pack. She could hear Finn and Elijah talking in hushed voices, but she ignored them. The last thing she wanted was to hear about how they wanted to deal with her. She knew what she was doing. She was protecting herself. She had always done that. Now it was no different. If she kept her heart hidden away, then she didn’t have to worry about it being broken. Riah thought about Elijah. He was the only person she could trust to see it. Could she really do the same thing when it came to Erik? Could she trust herself to talk to him and not break? She liked to think that she was strong, but the memories coming back after all this time… the pain she had felt back then was amplified.

If she let herself feel all of it on top of Erik’s rejection, she was afraid that she was going to turn into Klaus. She’d be even more cruel than him because she wasn’t sure that she’d have any reason not to. If it wasn’t that, she’d stop eating and she’d let herself dessicate. She couldn’t let herself do that. She couldn’t let it take over at once, so she wasn’t going to talk about it. She was going to put some distance between her and Erik, just like he wanted so she could pretend like it hadn’t happened. In a few centuries, she’d maybe be able to think about it again.

She wasn’t as strong as she wanted to be.

Finn and Sage left shortly after. Finn gave one soft look to Riah before he closed the door. He knew some of what she was going through. He was possibly the only person she would be able to talk to it about. Maybe one day, when they’d had some time, she would. But now it wasn’t right. Instead, she handed him the White Oak stakes to do with as he pleased and she went home to the only home she had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smol Finn and Riah moments with their son. Who hates them. Love it.


	34. Chapter 34

Elijah insisted that they go to Mystic Falls as soon as they got the call. Kol had told them everything that he knew as soon as he knew it. Alaric had been turned into some kind of super vampire and he had an indestructible White Oak stake. Esther had created her ultimate weapon to kill her abominations once and for all. Azariah knew that she should have killed her that day in the basement. The more she thought about it, the clearer it became that that was the true reason Esther had returned her memories. She had wanted the distraction so she could get away unscathed. Riah had let it happen right under her nose. She punched through a wall. A lot of things were running through her mind. She wished that things were different. She wanted to go back in time and stop her foolish, merciful heart. She should’ve killed them all when she had the chance.

Klaus was desiccated, trapped in a coffin. From Riah’s understanding, he was completely conscious, too. Good. It meant that he would get to feel what he put Finn through for all those years. It was the least he could do after everything he had put his family through. 

The ride to Mystic Falls was long and arduous. Since Elijah had learned the truth about Erik, things had been… strained between him and Azariah. Her refusal to talk about it and his confusion were heavy contributors. Azariah knew that she should have been more open to talking, but she couldn’t imagine it. It meant confronting everything that she feared. It was more than she could bear sometimes. She didn’t know how to begin the conversation. Even back then she had known that her son would drive a wedge between her and Elijah. It was doing the same thing now. 

A wall around her heart, hm? If that was what she wanted, she certainly had it. It was keeping her away from the person that she loved most in the world and she wouldn’t even take it down for him. She was a coward through and through. Too afraid to confront her past and too afraid to admit that Erik’s words had cut her to the core. That was all she had to say during this car ride. That was all that she had to say to make things right with Elijah. She turned to face him. He had his eyes fixed on the road. She took a deep breath. She needed to say it. She just had to speak up.

“Elijah… I… about Erik… you know that I met him. You know that he’s my son. Mine and Finn’s,” Riah began.

Elijah nodded. He didn’t say anything and he didn’t look at her as she continued.

“When we met with him, we tried to explain what Esther had done, but he didn’t care. He didn’t want to listen. He just wanted to tell us that he never wanted to see either of us again. He’s been alive for a long time without us and he’s not interested in learning about the past. And I didn’t want to talk about it. I still don’t, but I wanted you to know… what happened that day because it’s driven enough of a wedge between us. I’m sorry. Forgive me?”

He smiled softly. Without looking at her, he took her hand. “You’re forgiven. I love you, Riah. You don’t need to talk about it until you’re ready. I can only imagine how hard it must be for you.”

“You’re too good for me, Elijah Mikaelson.”

“Yes, I really am.”

She smiled. It didn’t feel like a weight had been lifted from her chest, but she knew that this was the beginning of just that. Soon she would be able to tell him everything. She’d taken the first step. She needed to find the courage to take the next ones. For now, she needed to focus her attention on the task before them. Elijah wanted to bargain for Klaus’s body. Riah didn’t argue with him because she knew how important his brother was to him, even now. Klaus wasn’t a good man. He wasn’t even a decent one. He was the monster, the black sheep, the creature that they needed to fear. He used that fear as a weapon against them all for years, and yet Elijah still felt responsibility for him. He was the dutiful older brother and Klaus was his charge. So Riah didn’t argue. She didn’t protest. She didn’t even make any conditions for taking him back. She simply went along with it.

Klaus was more vulnerable to Alaric than he had ever been to Mikael. Now, there was actually the potential that he might die. That’s why Elijah was desperate to have Klaus’s body in his possession. He wanted to make sure that it was safe. He didn’t want his brother to die. It was understandable, of course. Family was a bond. A burden. It was something that they all had to bear, just like the curse Esther had bestowed upon them a thousand years ago. They were going to have to make a very compelling argument to get the Mystic Falls crew to give them what they wanted. Of course they weren’t going to behave the way that they had the last time they were in Mystic Falls. They were trying to be better.

That was why she didn’t kill Esther when they met. That was why she let Stefan and Matt leave with their lives after the first time they tried to kill Finn. That was why Klaus was now in this situation and needed to be rescued. Who knew what would happen when an Original died. They had their theories, of course, that it would end the whole blood line, but she didn’t want to find out. Azariah should’ve just killed them all and been done with Mystic Falls for good.

She shook her head. She had done the right thing. Riah had to believe that. There was no way that she could have predicted any of this. There was no way that she could have prevented it, either. Esther was always going to find a way to try and kill her children. She couldn’t have changed anything. Even so, there was no going back. She looked out to the dark road. They would be nearing Elena’s house soon. They were going to need to have their arguments ready. That was the only way they would ever get Klaus’s body.

They stopped in front of the door. Azariah crossed her arms and nodded. She was ready. Elijah knocked on the door with his usual confidence. It took a few seconds, but she came forward. Elena Gilbert, just the same as when they left. She was shocked to see them there. Of course she was. She had probably hoped that she’d never see either of them again. She called out for Stefan. Both he and Matt came into view.

“Elijah. Azariah,” Stefan said coolly.

“Hello again,” Elijah responded.

Riah’s fingernails dug into her arm as she thought about that night. She’d barely managed to keep Finn safe and there she was, coming to them in peace. She kept her calm. The five of them stood still, staring at each other. Elena took a breath. She took a chance. She invited the Originals inside the house. They walked by Stefan and Matt, following Elena into the kitchen. Matt and Stegan were both staying near Elena, watching her like a hawk. One of them always had an eye on the Originals, the other on Elena. Obviously, they thought that Elijah and Riah were going to kill her. It wasn’t Riah’s plan, of course, but it wasn’t completely off the table for her. Stefan had tried to kill Finn. It would be a simple transaction of an eye for an eye in her mind. Still, she remained silent. Elena called Damon, insisting that he needed to be a part of this.

“Why are you here?” Elena asked.

“We understand that you have Niklaus in your possession. Officially incapacitated. Finally. Well done,” Riah said.

“We’re asking you to give him to us.” Elijah leaned back in his chair.

“What?”

“Alaric will stop at nothing to kill us all and I have no doubts that he’ll start with Klaus. All we need it to take that stake away from him. Once he’s been disarmed, my family will scatter to the ends of the Earth and Alaric will follow us.”

“And you’ll just run?” Stefan sat down next to Elena.

“We’ve done it before. Klaus and Rebekah spent the better part of a thousand years running from our father. Azariah was alone for nearly 5 centuries herself running from Klaus. What’s another half century while Elena lives out the rest of her natural life?”

“We’ve finally stopped him. After everything that he’s done to us, I can’t just let the two of you bring him back.” Elena shook her head.

“I give you my word, Elena, I will not revive Klaus within your nor even your children’s lifetimes. Perhaps that will finally teach him some manners.”

“If it were up to me, I’d leave him to rot for as long as he left Finn in a box. Poetic justice, and all that.”

“Why should we trust you? All you’ve done is screw her over,” Matt scoffed.

“And you almost killed Finn.” Azariah shot back. She rested her palms against the table, slightly rising from her chair. “You should consider yourselves lucky that-”

Elijah put his hand on her shoulder. She sat down again and bit her tongue. “I am deeply ashamed of my actions. But Azariah is correct. She could have been dead the instant we walked through that door tonight, so Elena, I leave it to you to make the decision whether to trust us or not.”

“Not! Hello?!” Damon’s voice broke through the receiver. Azariah groaned. “Did that concussion give you brain damage? Their lunatic siblings will kill you the first chance they get!”

“No, they won’t.” Azariah assured him. “Rebekah and Kol _will_ honour the terms. If you return Klaus’s body to us, Elena will come to no harm.”

Elena looked at Stefan. Azariah could hear her nervous heartbeat. Elena already knew that Elijah and Riah always kept their word. Riah wanted Elena to understand that she would leave Klaus to rot. She would take great pleasure in watching him suffer the way that she had suffered. Elena would get her chance to live a human life. A normal life. She wouldn’t have to worry about the Originals anymore. Elijah looked at Elena earnestly. 

“Do we have a deal?” He asked.

“No!” Damon yelled. “No, no, no, no! Did I mention _no_?!”

Stefan took Elena’s hand. “It’s your decision.”

She nodded. “Why do you want Klaus’s body?”

“He’s my brother. We remain together.”

“We have a deal,” she sighed.

****

* * *

****

The elevator slowly moved up. Azariah tapped her foot restlessly. She just wanted to get Klaus and get out of this place as quickly as she could. Finn put a hand on her shoulder to try and reassure her. There was a reason that two Originals were going to get Klaus. They could keep each other safe. She was happy that he was there with her. She hoped that this would be over sooner rather than later. She didn’t like leaving Elijah all by himself with the others. She didn’t trust that they wouldn’t use him as a scapegoat if it turned out that Alaric went after them. She was nervous. The elevator doors opened. Azariah hesitated before exiting into the storage unit. It was quiet. Too quiet. In her experience, that was never a good sign.

Damon was supposed to be there waiting for them. Even he knew how serious this situation was. He wouldn’t mess with them. At least, she didn’t think that he would. She instinctively took Finn’s hand. They looked around. She was reluctant to call out to Damon. There had to be a reason that he wasn’t already there. She looked down the aisle of units. Almost all of them had broken locks. That wasn’t a good sign. Damon knew which unit Klaus’s body was in. The last thing he needed to do was rip open all of those doors. Finn and Riah shared a glance. Alaric was here. They needed to be extra careful.

If they were lucky, Damon wasn’t already dead.

They stepped into another aisle. Azariah kept her eyes peeled for any other sign of Alaric being near them. She listened careful for footsteps while making sure that she and Finn covered theirs well. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Damon came from around a corner. He held a finger to his lips, gesturing for the two of them to come with him. He mouthed one word. ‘Alaric’. They needed to work fast to get Klaus out and to safety. 

Damon led them to the casket. It was ready to be wheeled to the car. Azariah took one side. Finn, the other. Damon started to lead them away. They were almost there. They were so close to getting away without even seeing Alaric. Azariah felt someone grab her arm and throw her away from the coffin. She landed heavily against the floor. She was quick to get back to her feet. Alaric was nowhere to be seen, but she could smell him. He was still close. She backed up a little. Damon looked up. Finn stayed near his little brother. 

It happened so quickly. She could feel Alaric behind her and she knew that it was the end. She turned. There was no way that she was going to get out of the way of the stake in time. Even if she somehow did, this was going to be a good distraction. They’d get Klaus out of here. She threw up her hands in a last ditch effort to protect herself. Alaric started to bring the stake down. She prepared herself for the feeling of it in her chest but it never came. She opened her eyes. Her vision was obscured by a black jacket. The tip of the White Oak stake was just visible through the thick fabric of Finn’s coat. She let out a choked sound. No. It wasn’t possible.

Alaric pulled the stake back to himself and Finn fell into Azariah’s arms. His skin was quickly becoming gray. She held onto him. She brushed his hair away from his face, resting her hand on his cheek. He was struggling to breath already.

“No. No, no, no, no, no! Finn, don’t you dare. Don’t you dare die!” she shouted.

With the last of his strength he pushed her away from him. “Go. Go!”

She stumbled to her feet. The desiccation reached his face and his body caught fire. She cried out in anguish. She had just gotten him back. She had just gotten to a point where they were friends again. He couldn’t just die. Alaric locked eyes with her. She couldn’t move. She was still in shock. Finn was dead. Just like that. Gone. Damon pulled her arm and she came back to reality. She ran to Klaus’s coffin and started running towards the car. Alaric appeared in front of her.

“Ah-ah-ah,” he tsked. “You’ll have to wait your turn.”

Alaric grabbed her shirt, pulling her close before throwing her across the room. She slid on the concrete. Damon rushed at Alaric as he opened the casket. This was the one thing she was supposed to do. She was supposed to get Klaus out of here. Alaric kicked Damon out of the way. Klaus’s eyes opened. Azariah ran towards Alaric again but she was too late. He stabbed the White Oak stake into Klaus’s chest. One final breath escaped him and that was it. He was gone.

Damon grabbed Azariah, stopping her from running to the casket. She couldn’t let Klaus die. Not now. No. It wasn’t fair. She couldn’t lose them both.

“Run! Riah, run!”

Damon pushed Riah away from Alaric. She sent one last look at the bodies of her friends. Her family. She ran. As far and as fast as she could. She reached the car and slammed her hands against the steering wheel as she drove away. She had failed. There wasn’t anyway that this could have gone any worse. Finn had given his life so that Azariah could save Klaus’s and she couldn’t even do that. She yelled. She cried. She sobbed. She didn’t know what else to do.

She couldn’t believe how upset she actually was that he was dead. Every time she’d pictured it, she’d been relieved. Borderline elated, even, that he was finally out of her life for good. She’d never once imagined how devastating it would actually be. Klaus, for better or worse, had been in her life since she was just a child. Like all of the Mikaelsons, he had been a constant driving force. She had always been able to rely that he was there, somehow, even when she was running away.

And Finn… he had just gotten his life back. He had Sage. They had Erik. Things were supposed to be better for him. They weren’t supposed to end like this. He should have just let her die. She had lived her life. Finn deserved a chance at one of his own. 

She stopped her car at the edge of the woods. She rested her head against the steering wheel and took a deep breath. How was she supposed to face Elijah and Rebekah after this? They were there in the woods, waiting for her and Finn to return with Klaus. She took a deep breath and composed herself. She tried to get rid of the remaining tears as she stepped out of the car. She ran to the meeting place. Rebekah and Elijah were standing alone. They both turned to face her and the tears came back.

“They’re gone,” she choked out. “Finn… he sacrificed his life for mine and I couldn't stop him. I couldn’t save Klaus! I- I’m so sorry, Elijah, I lost them both, I-”

Elijah pulled her into an embrace. He buried his head in her shoulder. He shuddered. It was so slight that she barely even felt it, but it was there. A silent sob. So many were going to die tonight because of her. One thing she knew for certain: they needed to get Rebekah and get out of town. The plan hadn’t changed, besides lugging a coffin along with them. And they didn’t have the White Oak stake. Alaric was still going to come after them. There were only four of them left now. The family needed to stay alive, whether or not they were all together. She couldn’t stop thinking about Klaus. About Finn.

Azariah moved to Rebekah. She threw herself in Riah’s arms. Riah brushed her hair away, whispering softly. Because she failed, Rebekah had lost two of her brothers. It was her fault. Elijah pulled them both into his arms. They held onto each other. All three of them had struggled because of Klaus. All three of them had wanted him dead at one point or another. None of them ever truly thought the day would come. Slowly, Elijah moved away from Rebekah.

“You were right about the sirelines,” he said softly. “Sage passed a few moments ago. Tyler Lockwood is dead, too, but the rest survived. You said that Niklaus turned their bloodline,” Elijah moved away from them.

“I thought he did,” Rebekah sniffed.

“It wasn’t me. It wasn’t Kol.” Elijah looked at Azariah.

She shook her head. “No. I didn’t turn Mary.”

“It wasn’t me, either, Elijah. It was Niklaus, I’m certain.”

“Then how are they still alive?”

The thought crossed her mind for a second. It was fleeting, hardly even a thought at all.

What if Klaus wasn’t really dead?

It didn’t explain why Tyler had still died, but as far as the others… no. It had to be true. Klaus was practically comatose. He had had no way to communicate. He was gone. Some part of her just wanted him to still be alive. Some small, very small, iota of her wanted him back.

“We have to find Kol and get out of here. We need to put as much distance between Mystic Falls and ourselves as we possibly can,” Azariah said.

Rebekah nodded. The tears were gone, replaced with a determined look. “I’ve got a bag packed. I’ll meet you by your car.”

“Be careful, Bekah. Come straight there if there’s any sign of Alaric.” Azariah hugged her again.

Rebekah was gone in an instant. Azariah and Elijah started their trek back to the car. Riah felt numb. Klaus was dead. They were on the run again. At least she was with Elijah this time around. It would be maybe over half a century before Elena would die, taking Alaric with her. She could survive.

After an hour or so, Rebekah still hadn’t shown up. Elijah had started to pace. It wasn’t a good time for Rebekah to be late. Finally, after far too long, Riah’s phone began to ring. Rebekah’s contact name came on the screen. Azariah answered, immediately putting it on speaker. 

“Rebekah! Where are you?!” Riah asked.

“I’m tired of running, Azariah. I took care of our problem. No more running. Never again.”

“What did you do, Rebekah?”

“I killed Elena. Alaric is dead now.”

“What?!” Elijah and Azariah spoke in unison.

“Go, brother. Be happy with her. You both deserve it. Consider a gift.”

Rebekah hung up the phone. Azariah stared at the screen until it turned black. She was in shock. 

“She killed Elena. No…” Riah said softly.

“What’s done is done, unfortunately. We can’t change it.”

“We need to leave this town. Chicago. It’s a good place to go.”

“Yes… Chicago… it sounds perfect.”

They got into the car. Elijah started driving towards the airport. Riah watched lights flash by her window. 

The end of an era. Within seconds of each other, two members of her family were dead. She looked at Elijah. She could make sure that they would survive. All she needed was Elijah by her side. Always and forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've done it. We've reached the end of Season 3 of TVD (at least with Elijah and Riah's involvement). This was my original ending for the story. I've kinda hinted at that in the past. But it's not the end. Because I watched The Originals and found out that I've got more writing in me. There will probably be more space between chapters soonish (within the next week or so) but chapters are also going to be a little longer.


	35. **Hope: Katerina**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! There's a short kind of "miniseries" that takes place in season 4 of TVD, just to make sure we cover all of Elijah's parts in the show, which basically covers like 2 1/2 episodes of the Cure arc, which I've titled Hope. For no particular reason. I'll be doing a similar thing with what I'm calling part 2 of this story, title to be revealed later. It'll all be posted within this work just to keep everything together. So, yay!

Elijah frowned at his phone. Azariah glanced at him. She was curious, naturally, but she knew better than to pry. He would tell her when he was ready to. They had decided that their communication skills needed work. They also needed to trust each other. There had been a lot that had happened over the past few months.

Klaus hadn’t technically died. Bonnie moved his soul into Tyler Lockwood’s body to make sure that her friends didn’t die. Eventually, he’d returned to his own body. Rebekah now despised Klaus more than ever because of how he had treated her. Azariah did, too. She had spent so long believing that she had allowed Klaus to die. She had carried the guilt of his death on top of Finn’s. It was maddening.

And Elena Gilbert was a vampire.

Rebekah had forced her and Matt off of the bridge. Elena died with Damon’s blood in her system. She transitioned. Stefan and Damon had gone to the ends of the Earth to find a cure for her. With Klaus’s help, of course. They had Jeremy Gilbert kill Kol in order to complete his Hunter’s Mark faster so they could find the cure. The cure that Alexander of the Five had promised Rebekah all those years ago. They’d managed to awaken the man that was supposedly the actual original immortal being. He was gone. The cure, too. Katherine had shown up and taken it before anyone else could get their hands on it. Elijah and Azariah were doing their best to stay out of it all. They just wanted to live their lives together without being constantly dragged into Klaus’s drama. Chicago was nice for a while, but they’d found a place just outside of the city. It was a decent sized house. It was quiet and just far enough away from the city that they didn’t have to listen to all of the noise every night. Perfect for the two of them to lie low.

“Katerina is trying to contact me,” Elijah said.

“Excuse me?” Azariah sat up.

“Craigslist, of all things. I didn’t think anyone still used this network, but apparently they do. She wants to set up a meeting with me.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Riah-”

“You _have_ to know that she’s going to use you. It’s what she does. It’s what she’s always done. You can’t trust her. Not for an instant, El-”

“I know that.” Elijah moved over to her, pulling her into his lap. He gently nipped her earlobe. “But she has the cure. I can get it from her.”

“You’re too honourable to try and beat her at her own game, Elijah.”

“And that’s exactly why this will work. I’m going to take some of your advice, my love.” His hand trailed along her inner thigh. His lips ghosted against her skin. She leaned back into his touch, slowly relaxing as he whispered his plan to her. “I can get her to trust me. I can get her to make a deal for the cure.”

Azariah twisted them around on the couch so she was on top of them. She misjudged the distance and they fell to the floor. She was straddling his hips. “You know just as well as I that there is only one way that you’re going to get that kind of trust from Katerina Petrova. I don’t think you have it in you to convince her that you’re still in love with her.”

“That implies that I was in love with her in the past.” Elijah tried to put his arms around Riah’s waist. She grabbed his wrists and pinned them to the ground. “I have loved few. I have only ever been in love with you.”

“Then you’d better brush up on your acting skills, my dear Elijah. It’s the only way you’ll catch her attention.”

“You’re surprisingly open to this plan,”

“Because you’re not going to sleep with her, obviously. Kiss her, woo her, sweep her off her damn feet. Do whatever you have to do, but this… you” Riah moved her hand down to brush against his crotch. His whole body stiffened underneath her, “are mine.” She growled in his ear.

Elijah broke free from her grip and crushed his mouth against hers. Riah made a muffled sound of surprise. Their teeth clashed together and she lost her breath. It took a moment for them to find their bearings and get into a rhythm. Azariah pushed Elijah’s back against the floor again. Their lips moved apart as she did so. Elijah reached for the back of her head, pulling her into a heated kiss that left her breathless. He slid a hand up the back of her thigh, dangerously close to her core. She grabbed his hand and tsked at him. She ground her hips against his. He was already hard.

“So impatient,” she scolded.

“Only when you insist on teasing me relentlessly,” Elijah huffed.

“I tease because of the adorable sounds you make when I do.”

Riah started to unbutton his shirt, taking her time as she moved down his body. She made sure to lock eyes with him as she kissed his skin. His eyes were nearly black with lust. She nipped at his chest. Each mark she left healed quickly. His muscles rippled under her touch. Riah loved knowing that she had this kind of power over him. She pulled his cock free from his pants and continued moving down until she was inches away from where he wanted her. She caught his gaze once again and slid his head into her mouth.

Elijah went rigid, grabbing a fistful of her hair. She hummed, slowly brushing her tongue over his tip. His head made a dull thud against the floor as he tried to relax into her touch. She could hear his breathing grow shallow as she swirled her tongue around him. Soft moans escaped his lips. It was sweet music. Every sound he made sent shivers down her spine.

Riah opened her mouth wider and took him a few more inches down. His grip in her hair tightened. She bobbed up and down, letting the tip of her tongue drag along his shaft. His entire body was stiff against her. He let out a choked groan and lost his composure. He started to buck his hips in time with her movements, fucking into her mouth. These rare moments when he let himself lose control were her favourite. It was just the two of them. There was no need to worry about anyone or anything else.

After a few more thrusts into her mouth, Elijah came. He groaned, boh hands in her hair as he rode out hsi orgasm. Rick swallowed every drop. She pulled off of him and wiped the corners of her mouth. Elijah pulled her down for a quick kiss.

“You’ve made your point,” he joked.

“Good. Because I can’t go with you to see her. The two of us can’t risk being seen together while you’re trying this. Just… call me. Please. When you can. Let me know that you’re okay.”

“Of course.” He ran a finger across her cheek. “I promise.”

****

* * *

****

Azariah parked her car on one of the back roads near the gazebo. This was the day they were finally going to get the cure from Katherine. She and Elijah had a meeting set up for a little later in the day. Azariah was more than a little anxious to see Elijah herself. They had been apart for a little over a month now. Elijah had been doing everything within reason to get Katherine to trust him. Riah didn’t have all of the details, but she knew Katherine’s methods. She truly was like Tatia in that regard. Using men to get what she wanted. Well, she wasn’t the only one who could play that game. From what Elijah had told Riah, everything was going to plan. This was the last step.

Riah went up to the gazebo. After a while, she was able to find the perfect spot to lie in wait. She had an hour before Katherine was supposed to show up. If she wasn’t late. Riah wouldn’t put it past her. Riah knew why Katherine was doing all of this. She was hoping that Klaus would take the cure in exchange for her freedom. She needed Elijah to help her broker the deal. She thought that the only way he would help was if he was in love with her. She was just as paranoid as Klaus. It was pathetic, really. Katherine loved to think she was strong but when it came down to it, she was still the scared little human girl that had found her way to the Original family.

Riah was genuinely surprised when she saw Katherine show up on time to the gazebo. She was there first, which was even more surprising. It wasn’t like her. Normally, she would have waited until she saw Elijah. At least, that was the way she had been the few times Riah had encountered her. None of this was very like her. Katherine looked… different. Elijah said she only wore designer clothes. Anything and everything expensive. And her hair wasn’t curly. It looked more like… Elena.

Katherine looked around the gazebo nervously. She tapped her phone on her hand. It was like she didn’t know who to expect. Elijah showed up and she was shocked. That was enough for Azariah to know for sure. There was no way that this was Katherine Pierce. It was Elena Gilbert. For one reason or another, Elena had taken Katherine’s place. Azariah walked up to the gazebo. Elijah looked at her in shock. This wasn’t the plan, she knew, but these were special circumstances. Riah grabbed Elena’s throat and pushed her against one of the beams.

“Where’s Katherine?” Azariah asked.

“I am Ka-” Elena choked out.

“Oh, stop lying, Elena. I know it’s you.” Riah held up Elena’s hand and looked at her daylight ring. “Where is she?”

Elena didn’t say anything. Elijah sighed heavily.

“Well, this certainly complicates things.”

He grabbed Elena and ran. Riah was close behind him. He took them to a secluded alleyway not too far from the gazebo. It was where they had been planning to meet once they had the cure. Elijah’s phone started to ring.

“Katerina?” Elijah asked.

It wasn’t. It was Stefan Salvatore. Fantastic. Now those two had joined the fray. The plan _was_ perfect until everyone from Mystic Falls had decided to show up and ruin it. RIah wanted nothing more than to be free from those fools. They were really starting to get on her nerves. Elijah hung up the phone with a frustrated sigh.

“You’re all idiots,” Elena scoffed.

“Excuse me?” Elijah said.

Elena sighed loudly. “Ugh. What happened to you, Elijah? I mean, I thought you were supposed to be a man of honour, and yet you’ve been hooking up with Katherine behind your girlfriend’s back?”

“Wrong.” Riah stepped in front of Elena. “We had a plan to get the cure from Katherine.”

“She contacted me when she learned about the cure. Azariah and I knew that she would only truly trust me if she thought I was madly in love with her.”

Elena clapped slowly and pushed off from the wall. “Maybe you’re not as dumb as the others, then.”

“I’d heard about your transformation, but you’re not just a vampire, are you?” Elijah looked into Elena’s eyes. “There’s something else.” Elena shrugged. “You. You’re not yourself. You’ve abandoned your emotions. Why?”

“My brother’s dead. Katherine killed him. She didn’t tell you?”

“You really think she would have?” Riah shook her head.

She and Elijah exchanged a glance. They had, of course, known that Katherine was cruel. They’d never expected that she’d go after a child like that. Azariah had always made it a point not to hurt children. Even if it was the only source of blood for miles, she wouldn’t. She couldn’t. It was unthinkable. Klaus was the only one that she knew who would think of it and he was just in general a horrible person. A part of Azariah had hoped that Katherine wasn’t the same. She wasn’t shocked to learn she was wrong, but still. It didn’t make it any easier to hear. Jeremy didn’t deserve to die.

Azariah knew why Elena had left her humanity behind. After having lost so much herself, she knew the pain. Originals didn’t have the humanity switch, as vampires so lovingly called it. They never had. Every kill, every death, they had to feel it. It was a part of their curse as vampires. Azariah could only imagine what she would have felt if she lost her son after she was a vampire. She might’ve ended up just like Niklaus in the end. Not even Elijah could have brought her back from that.

Elena had every right to lose herself in her vampirism. Riah really wished that she hadn’t, but she could understand it. It hurt. Being a vampire hurt. Azariah knew that pain all too well herself. Elena was never cut out to be a vampire because she had already felt deeply as a human.

“You’re not the only vampire to lose someone,” Riah said. “Suck it up.”

Elena scoffed at Azariah’s words. She didn’t care. That was the whole point of her having her humanity turned off. Riah grabbed Elena byu the throat and threw her against the wall. Elijah put his hand on Riah’s shoulder. She shook him off.

“Do you really think you’re so much better than other vampires, Elena? Drive this through your hand.” Riah held up a glass shard.

“You really think I’d hang out with Rebekah and _not_ be on vervain?” Elena laughed.

“Oh, I expected it.” Riah shrugged and dropped the glass. “I wonder how long it would take to drain it from you. You know, I could do that and _compel_ you to turn it back on.” Something flashed in Elena’s eyes at her words. Fear. It was brief but it was there. “Ah, there it is.” Riah let Elena go. “Fear. Emotion. You’re not nearly as gone as you claim.”

“Is that really what you think? That somewhere, deep down, I’m human? Because that’s stupid. Damon and Stefan are tiring enough.”

“You can’t blame them for having hope,” Elijah said. “It’d be a shame if the world lost a soul as compassionate as yours.”

“‘Your compassion is a gift, Elena. Carry it with you always and forever.’ I remember reading that in a letter once.”

“Well, the writer sounds positively gifted. I’m sure he meant what he wrote.”

“I’m sure he did. And it felt good to watch that letter burn. Along with my old life and along with Jeremy.”

Azariah sighed. She knew it was futile to try and talk sense into a vampire with no humanity. It was an instinct. They would do and say whatever they needed to keep their humanity gone. It was easier to be a vampire when humans were just a food source and humans could be left behind. But, eventually, they all came back. Someone would come along that made them strive to be better and all that regret and pain would come crashing back in an instant. It was a vicious cycle. One that hadn’t been broken in centuries. Azariah started to say something, but Elena’s neck was broken before she could say it. She fell to the ground.

Katherine was standing behind her. She looked between Riah and Elijah and smirked.

“Sorry. I got held up.” She smiled sweetly at Azariah, putting a hand on Elijah’s arm. “Do you mind?”

Riah moved towards Katherine. Elijah grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks. “Riah, no.”

She stopped. She bit her tongue. “Fine. I’ll give you a moment.”

Azariah walked over Elena’s body and back towards the gazebo. She shot another look towards Elijah. Elijah and Katherine. She had been fine with this plan when she didn’t have to watch Katherine fawn all over him. The sight filled her with jealousy. It was the reason she had stayed away in the first place. Katherine had always rubbed her the wrong way. Riah didn’t want anything to do with her. And yet she had willingly let Elijah go to her. Alone. She started pacing. Katherine had been a sweet girl once. Meeting Klaus had started her transformation into something else entirely. He seemed to have that effect on people. It really was uncanny.

She started walking to Elijah’s car. He’d told her where it was parked earlier. She didn’t see any reason to wait around for Katherine to be herself and try to mark what she thought was her territory. Riah growled about vampires and cures and hybrids under her breath. She kept telling herself not to get dragged into this mess and this time, she’d done it to herself! It was frustrating, to say the least.

Azariah looked up and saw Rebekah perched on top of the car. She slid down the hood, shaking her head at Riah.

“And here I thought Elijah was the smart brother. He left you for Katherine Pierce of all people? I’ll dagger him myself,” Rebkah promised.

“Firstly, you don’t have any smart brothers. Both of them are idiots. Second, it’s not like that. I _asked_ Elijah to do this.”

“You what?”

“To get the cure. You know Katherine. She only trusts people wrapped around her finger, so we let her believe that Elijah was.”

“Clever. And devious. Well done.”

Azariah looked across the street. Katherine was talking to Elijah again. She wasn’t certain that it had been a good idea. She knew that Elijah would never break her trust, but that didn’t mean a part of her wasn’t scared that she might lose his heart. To Katherine of all people. She bit her lip and watched them. Katherine put something in Elijah’s hands. She kissed his cheek and walked away. Riah’s heart hurt. She had to keep in mind that it had been her idea. She wasn’t going to say anything about it. Now she knew better than to do this again. It wasn’t worth it. Elijah walked to them, a small box in hand. Rebekah perked up at the sight of it.

It was that simple? That was all it took to get Katherine to give them the cure? That seemed too easy. Elijah walked to Azariah and hugged her. Riah was more than happy to hug him back, taking in his smell. She had missed it. Just having him in her arms made everything else she had felt melt away.

“Elijah!” Rebekah said. “Azariah told me all about your plan to get the cure. I thought you were all about honour.”

“I am. Although I do still hold out hope Katerina is in that person, I also know that I cannot trust her until it is revealed. This was a necessary evil, as it were.”

“Why don't you just give me the cure so I can judge you silently elsewhere?” Rebekah held out her hand.

Elijah looked at his sister curiously. “And what could you possibly want with the cure?”

“I want to be human again.”

Azariah was taken aback. She shouldn’t have been so surprised. It was the same thing Rebekah had wanted when she was going to marry Alexander. Humanity, true humanity, was something that had been lost to them for so long. Rebekah truly longed for it, just as Finn had done?

“How do you know that being human is the answer you're looking for? I mean, it's nothing but a romantic notion. The grass won't necessarily be greener, Rebekah.”

“You're probably right.” Rebekah sighed. “But I don't care. I want to live a simple life as a normal person. And when it ends, it ends. We've had 20 lifetimes together, Elijah. Isn't that enough?”

“I just don't understand. I mean, why must you always consider our family a burden? Always and forever. I mean, those words are as important to me today as they-as they ever were.”

“You will always be my brother. And I will never stop loving you. But now it's time for me to live and die the way that I choose, not the way you and Nik want me to. Please. Please just give me the cure.”

“Rebekah, you understand that this isn’t a decision to make a whim. It can’t be undone. Everything, all the advantages that we have gained as vampires, will be lost to you.”

Before Rebekah could respond, her phone started to ring. She sighed and started digging around her bag until she found it. She answered.

“What do you want, Nik?” She sighed after his response, whatever it was. “Let's just say that things have gotten complicated. In fact, why don't you speak to one of those complications? Here.”

She handed the phone to Elijah and walked to one side of the car. Azariah raised an eyebrow and pointed to the back seat. Rebekah sighed heavily again and begrudgingly slid into the back seat. Azariah sat in the passenger side. Elijah was another moment longer before joining them.

“I've got the cure and I'm bringing it back to Mystic Falls,” he said to Klaus.

“With a long list of demands, I assume.”

“Not that long.”

“Come home, brother. We'll settle this like family.”


	36. Hope: The Cure

Elijah gathered the family in Klaus’s mansion. Azariah was sitting next to him, leaning back in her chair with a cup of coffee in hand. She was going to need the extra caffeine to get through this day. Or the week. Or however long it was that Elijah decided he wanted to hold the cure himself. As long as he had it in his possession, his siblings would follow him because both of them wanted it for themselves. Well, Klaus wanted it for Elena but it was for selfish reasons. Rebekah wanted to be human. Riah wasn’t in the least bit shocked by either of their motivations. 

Elijah was willing to listen to their cases. Riah had a feeling that he had no intentions of giving the cure to Klaus regardless, but he would at least listen to Klaus talk for a while. Riah didn’t particularly care which one of them got it. That was a lie, of course. She didn’t wish any joy for Niklaus at the moment. She had called him brother once because he saved her life. It didn’t change the facts or the past. The last thing the world needed was a surplus of hybrids, all of whom would be sired to Klaus and do his every wish. They obviously wouldn’t be a threat to her health, but her mental state would simply decline because they were such a nuisance.

Elijah took a sip of the tea Riah had brewed for him earlier. “All right. Rebekah, you may state your case.”

“You sound like a lawyer, Elijah,” Riah joked.

He shot her a look and she shrugged. She was right. He was making this sound like some kind of a trial. Rebekah locked eyes with her brother. She moved forward in her chair.

“Elijah, being a human means a fresh start. I can grow old and have a family and fill my days with meaning, knowing that each one matters,” she said.

Klaus laughed. “Well, that was _poetic,”_ he mocked.

“Well, if you can provide us with a more compelling reason for wanting the cure, Klaus, please.” Elijah turned to his younger brother.

Klaus’s expression grew grim. It was the most serious that Riah had seen him since they had been reunited. That was saying something, considering Esther had tried to kill them all not so long ago. He crossed his arms.

“Silas can appear as anyone. He got inside my thoughts, convinced me I was dying. He will torment me until I give him the cure.”

“And in doing so he will break down the wall to the Other Side,” Rebekah reminded him.

“So it doesn't trap him there when he dies. He wants to reunite with his lost soulmate.” Klaus looked at Riah and Elijah, holding hands under the table. “You two of all lovesick fools should applaud his devotion.”

Riah held up her hands defensively. “I don’t care either way. Don’t drag me into this.”

“He will open the floodgates for every supernatural being that has ever died,” Rebekah scoffed.

“Including our dear brothers, Kol and Finn. We'll have our family back.”

Azariah clenched her jaw. She looked at the wall. Elijah took her hand again. She still had mixed emotions about Finn’s death. The memories Esther had so _lovingly_ restored to Riah had brought back some emotions she had never known she’d felt for Finn before. Including love. Not the powerful, all consuming love that she held for Elijah, but it was pure. The kind of love that humans were meant to have. Finn had died saving her life. She couldn’t just forget that. And there was always the matter of Erik. Ah, poor Erik. She hadn’t seen or heard from him since Atlanta. She wondered more than once if he had died with Kol and Finn. If he was dead, he could come back. But she didn’t know if he was dead. And it wouldn’t only be Kol and Finn that came back. It would be Esther. Mikael. Every supernatural creature that she and her family members had ever wronged. There was no shortage of those out there.

Rebekah and Klaus continued arguing over whether or not it would be wise to give the cure to Silas. Elijah looked between his siblings and finally settled his gaze on Azariah. She had already expressed her disinterest in it all, but he still wanted her counsel. She glanced at Rebekah. Elijah nodded. He understood what she meant. Rebekah had made a much better argument. Besides, Klaus had suffered the Hunter’s Curse for 50 years or so. Silas would no doubt lose interest eventually. Immortality had a way of doing that to people. 

Elijah turned to Klaus. “Your personal discomfort might not be sufficient reason for putting the entire world in jeopardy, Klaus. I think our sister deserves a shot at happiness.”

Rebekah immediately perked up at his words, a smile blooming across her face. Klaus looked at Elijah incredulously, as if he couldn’t believe someone would ever choose Rebekah over him.

“Tell me you're joking. Tell me you're not fating me to an eternity of torture,” he said.

“Might humble you a bit,” Riah muttered.

Klaus glared at her and Elijah elbowed her in the ribs. She shrugged, sipping some more coffee.

“I made my decision.”

Klaus stood and stalked over to Rebekah. He leaned close to her ear. She stiffened. Usually when Klaus was that close to one of them and angry, they ended up in one of the coffins he had stored in the basement.

“When you're sick and dying, and you beg for my blood, I will laugh in your face and compel you to forget me.”

He left quickly. It was nice to see that he was still a dick. The world changed around them but Riah could always rely on Klaus’s taunts and threats.Rebekah didn’t let it show if it had affected her. She simply fixed her hair and cleared her throat. She looked to Elijah expectantly, almost as if she thought that he’d have the cure ready instantly. She was hiding the smile that Riah knew was begging to break through to the surface.

“Where is the cure?” Rebekah asked finally.

Rebekah, it's no secret that you are impulsive, emotional, and at times morally questionable,” Elijah said. Rebekah opened her mouth to protest. Elijah held up his hand to silence her. “Prove to me this isn't just another one of your whims, that you know precisely what you are giving up here.”

“Fine. Anything.”

“I want you to live a day as a human. This day. No vampire privileges-- no strength, no compulsion, no nothing. If you succeed, if you still believe this is what you want, the cure is yours.”

Rebekah looked surprised. Her body had tensed the more that he had spoken, but once he was finished, she relaxed. She was resigned to this. She was going to do this. She accepted his challenge with vigor, getting up from the table and leaving the room. Elijah watched her go. Azariah moved from her chair into Elijah’s, settling into his lap. It had been a month since they had been together and this was the first moment alone that they had been able to find since then. She put her coffee cup on the table. Riah leaned down and captured his lips with hers. It felt good to kiss him again. It felt right. She didn’t care about anything else that was happening when he was holding her. He tasted like the black tea he’d been drinking. 

He moved away from her, resting his forehead against hers. Elijah licked his lips. 

“So, after today, where are we heading?” he asked.

“You aren’t going to stay with Klaus again?” Riah said, the hint of a smile on her lips at the simple thought of Elijah choosing her over his brother.

“No, I think Niklaus is going to need some time alone after this. And what better way to spend that time than with the woman I love?”

His words made her heart glow. She kissed him again, burying her hands in his hair. Elijah gently bit her bottom lip as she pulled away from him, clearly disappointed she broke away.

“I was hoping we might look for Erik, actually,” she said. Elijah turned his head to the side. “I don’t know who sired him, so I don’t know if he’s…”

“So Atlanta it is.”

“You know you don’t have to help me look for him. He’s not your… responsibility.”

They both knew what she had truly meant. _He’s not your son._ The words were true. Elijah had every reason to want to stay away from Erik. He was a reminder that Azariah had a child with another man. His brother. Erik wasn’t his son. He was his nephew. It was a painful reminder of the past. The only saving grace Azariah could find was that Elijah didn’t remember Erik’s birth or Azariah ever even being pregnant. She wondered if that would have changed anything in his mind. It hadn’t in hers. When Erik was born, she had been certain that Finn would be the man she spent the rest of her life with. For all intents and purposes, he had been. Her… un… death… was for Elijah.

She didn’t think she’d be able to make amends with Erik. It had been a thousand years of separation, after all. They were more strangers than relatives at this point. She just needed to know that he was alive. She hoped more than anything that he was alive.

“He’s your son, Riah,” Elijah spoke softly, “and my nephew. He’s family and he’s important to you. Of course I want to help you search for him.”

“You’re too good to me sometimes.”

“I’ll take that under consideration. But, just so you know,” he gave her a quick peck on the cheek, “this isn’t me being too good to you. This is simply being a good boyfriend.”

Azariah stood up. She looked around the house. It made her nervous. She could still taste the champagne in her mouth. The feel of the glass shattering in her hand. She had thought that she had broken it, but it was obvious to her now that Esther had broken it in hope it would cut Riah’s hand. She wanted her blood to complete a ritual for her death. She shivered. Elijah put his hands on her shoulder. She took a deep breath to calm herself. Elijah could hear her heart rate increase. Since her panic attack in Atlanta, he’d been working with her on calming techniques. Most of them involved losing herself in Elijah. One or both of them would tell a story of the past. It always worked. She had never truly thought she’d come back to this house. It was only for Elijah that she had in the first place and he was the only reason she wasn’t running for the hills now.

They started to walk to one of the living rooms, still discussing Atlanta. Elijah stopped. Rebekah was standing there with the White Oak Stake. He raised an eyebrow. Rebekah walked up to him and put it in his hand.

“When I’m human,” she began, “this will mean nothing to me. You should have it. You always should have had it.”

She kissed Elijah’s cheek and left, saying something about prom as she went. Elijah’s hand lingered on his cheek. Rebekah was finally going to get that high school dance she’d wanted so much. Riah looked at the stake in Elijah’s hand. A reminder that they weren’t quite as immortal as they liked to think. A final gift from Esther. It still had blood on the tip. She wondered if it was Kol’s or Klaus’s. Both of them had been stabbed with it. Klaus only survived because of Bonnie’s intervention. Yet another thing Riah had mixed emotions on. She couldn’t just let Klaus die now. He could be the sire of her son. If her son was still alive. And he was Elijah’s brother. Hers, too, technically. She was still struggling with hatred and gratitude towards him. He hadn’t daggered her in months which was an improvement, all things considered.

Elijah set the stake on the fireplace mantle. He stared at it for a moment. The weapon that had taken his younger brother from him. Riah had loved Kol. Even with all of his hijinks and pranks. He’d caused more trouble than the others for sure, but it was never malicious in it’s intent. Not truly. Riah had always liked that about him. She took Elijah’s hand. They hadn’t gotten a chance to properly mourn Kol. Katherine had contacted Elijah soon after it had happened. They had been so focused on setting their plans into motion to get the cure that they had allowed other things to fall to the wayside. She leaned her head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head.

She stepped away. She was feeling a little peckish. Klaus had to have a storage of blood bags somewhere. That was her excuse, but she knew that Elijah needed a moment alone to reflect. She started towards the foyer when she saw Caroline leaving with a dress box.

“Ah, making good use of Klaus, I see,” Riah joked.

“Azariah! I didn’t realise you were back in town.” Caroline looked around nervously.

“Relax. I’m not staying for long. You know, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Klaus act like this.” She gestured to the dress box. “It’s not often that he falls in love.”

“Please. He’s not in love with me.”

“I beg to differ. After everything that you and your friends have done to him, he would still do almost anything for you. He won’t even do that for _us_ , his family. So, when he says that he’ll be your last love, he means it.”

Caroline looked at the ground briefly. She left quickly. Azariah wasn’t surprised to see her go. But Riah hadn’t been lying. The last time she had seen Klaus fawn over someone like that, especially after learning he wasn’t getting his way, was Aurora. Ah, Klaus had loved that girl so much that he had practically begged her to run away with them. She’d refused. Azariah still didn’t understand why. It wasn’t like she didn’t know who and what Klaus was. It hadn’t bothered her until the very end. Riah shook her head. It was business from a thousand years ago. Aurora was probably dead, anway.

She made her way back to Elijah. He was with Klaus. Klaus had the White Oak Stake in hand, the tip pointed at Elijah’s chest. She tensed up immediately. Elijah had a slight smirk on his face.

“As _your_ only living brother,” Klaus said, “know that you and Azariah will never have a moment’s peace again. I will do everything in my power to ensure that the two of you are as miserable as I am.”

Elijah pushed the stake away. He held a certain pity in his gaze as he looked at his younger brother. He shook his head.

“It is such a hollow little life you lead, Niklaus.”

Elijah touched Klaus’s cheek. After a moment, he walked to Azariah, holding out his hand. She took it. They started to walk the grounds. She looked up at him.

“You know he’ll keep his promise. To make sure we never know happiness,” she said.

“That makes him a fool,” Elijah said. “As long as I have you, Azariah, I have happiness.”

“That is, without a doubt, the most horribly cliche and corny thing you have ever said to me, Elijah Mikaelson.”

“As Klaus put it, I am a lovesick fool.”

He kissed her again, putting a hand on her waist and drawing her in close. She happily wrapped her arms around his neck, letting her weight fall into his.

****

* * *

****

Rebekah was coming up the drive. Elijah and Azariah had gone to her house to give her the cure. Rebekah looked stunning in the dress that she had chosen. Elijah and Azariah hadn’t gotten a chance to see it before she’d headed off to prom. She was smiling. Riah hoped that Rebekah had good news for them. She really did. Rebekah deserved happiness. Riah just wasn’t sure that Rebekah was ready for the challenges that would come with being human. It had been a long time since she’d been one, after all. She’d grown accustomed to a certain kind of life. Of course, Azariah and Elijah would always be there for her. They would keep her safe and all of those things, but they wouldn’t be able to do so forever. They would have to watch her die.

She walked right up to Elijah with a grin on her face. He put a hand in his pocket. Azariah took his other one.

“You’re home. And how did our Cinderella fare?” Elijah asked.

“I won’t lie. There were complications,” Rebekah began. She smiled wider. “But I passed your test with flying colours.”

Elijah and Azariah smiled, too. It was significantly smaller because they knew what this meant. Rebekah would be human. She would grow old and she would die. They would be there when she finally left the Earth, more than likely. They would bury her, just like they had two others. At least she would get the chance to live the life that she said she wanted. Her happiness was more important than anything else.

“If this is what you truly want… it’s yours.”

Elijah held out the small box that housed the cure. It seemed so plain for something so important. Rebekah reached out and grabbed it. She let out a sigh of relief.

“I guess it’s time I turned into a pumpkin. Thank you, Elijah.”

Without another word, she started to walk away from them. Azariah watched her leave. She had expected Rebekah to take it right then and there if not just to make sure that it was real. After all, Katherine had tricked her once. Riah smiled sadly. She was going to miss Rebekah. She had only just gotten her back. No. She couldn’t think like that. She wasn't losing Rebekah. And she wasn’t going to for a reasonable amount of time. She was going to meet nieces and nephews. Rebekah would feel love and heartbreak and family as a human with human-level emotions. She would get everything that she had wanted since she was a girl. It was bittersweet. 

Elijah’s phone ringing pulled Riah from her thoughts. She caught a glimpse of the caller ID. Rebekah. They shared a confused glance. Riah looked at Rebekah still walking away. No. Elijah answered the phone, putting it on speaker.

“Rebekah?” 

Her voice was panicked. “Elijah, I think Nik's up to something.”

“Where did you go?”

“I'm still at the prom. Look, don't do anything with the cure until I see you. Something's not right. Elijah? Hello? Elijah, do not take your eyes off that cure.”

Elijah took the phone away from himself for a moment. The realisation hit them both. That was Silas. He had gotten into their heads. He had the cure. Klaus must’ve told Silas what Elijah’s plan was. He couldn’t stand the idea of someone getting something he wanted. 

“I think it might be a little late for that.”

****

* * *

****

Rebekah had thrown a tantrum when she got home. It had been a couple of days since then. She’d hardly even left her room at all. Riah and Elijah had taken up temporary residence in her house, hoping that their presence might help her calm down a little. It didn’t. She saw this as the ultimate betrayal from her older brothers. She didn’t entirely blame Elijah for what had happened, but she wasn’t happy with him. Riah had stopped trying to get Rebekah to talk about it a few hours in. Klaus had disappeared that night. He didn’t even come to gloat once. If Azariah wasn’t angry with him, she might have been concerned.

The fact that Rebekah had come down for any kind of breakfast was a miracle. Elijah came in with a letter in hand. Katherine’s seal was on it. That didn’t bode well.

“I’ve found Klaus. It would seem our brother has gone to New Orleans.”

“New Orleans? What the hell is Klaus doing there?” Rebekah asked.

“Evidently there are witches conspiring against him. So, knowing our brother, this was a mission to silence and slaughter.”

“Well, the French Quarter witches are not a lot to be trifled with. You don't suppose they've found a way to kill him once and for all, do you?” Rebekah smiled and took a sip of her drink.

Elijah shot her a look. “Rebekah, in the name of our family, you might try to dial down your glee.”

“What family? We're four distrustful acquaintances who happen to share an immortal curse. I, for one, hope they've found a way to make that traitorous bastard rot.”

Elijah sighed. He pulled on his jacket and started heading for the door. 

“Where are you going?”

“To find out who's making a move against our brother. And then I'll either stop them...or I'll help them, depending on my mood.”

Azariah stood up and walked to Elijah, stopping him as he reached the front door. “I’m going with you.”

“No. I need you to stay here with Rebekah. She’s… fragile. She needs a friend right now.”

“I don’t trust Klaus. He has the daggers and now, the White Oak Stake. How can you trust that he won’t use either against _you?_ Especially if someone is supposedly conspiring against him.”

Elijah kissed her gently. “He’s my brother. I have to go.”

She sighed heavily. “Fine. But call me. Everyday. Don’t miss it. Otherwise, I’m going down there and throwing him into the Mississippi. And you, too.”

He smiled. “I give you my word.”


	37. Hope: The Originals

Elijah’s report from the first call was… shocking, to say the least. He claimed that there was a pregnant werewolf. She was carrying Klaus’s child. He wasn’t sure how it had happened. One of nature’s loopholes, but it was true, regardless. Elijah had listened to the child’s heartbeat. He could feel it. Klaus had wanted it. Elijah was certain of it, but he was doing what he always did. He was running away from it. Niklaus Mikaelson had no idea how to pursue his own happiness. He was always scared that he was going to break it, it seemed. Elijah just wanted this for him. He wanted it for all of them.

Riah leaned back against the couch, listening to Elijah talk about what this child could mean for them. A chance at redemption for Niklaus. Elijah had always wanted that for his brother. Riah took a deep breath. She didn’t have the same faith in Klaus that Elijah did. He’d hurt her one too many times. She had no doubts that he would do the same to Elijah if he had the chance. That was the real reason she wanted him to call her. She couldn’t have cared less about whoever was conspiring against Klaus. There was always someone conspiring against him. He was a dick. It came with the territory of being a dick. 

“This child… he wants it,” Elijah said. “I could see it in his eyes. He’s throwing it all away. Like he always does.”

“So then take the girl and come home,” Riah said. “We’ll take care of her and the child, Klaus be damned.”

“I’m afraid it’s not that simple. The witches are quite determined to force our hands in the matter. They mean to take the Quarter back from Marcel,”

“Marcel. You say that name as if it should mean something to me,”

Elijah sighed. “I promise that I will explain it all.”

It was Riah’s turn to let out a sigh. She knew that there were a lot of things she never got the chance to learn because of her absence. People from their lives she didn’t know. Things they had done. New Orleans was one of their more impressive accomplishments. She wasn’t surprised that Klaus wanted it back. If he couldn’t have something, he always wanted it more. Like the child he still was. And yet Elijah insisted on trying to help him. The noble brother. It was one of the reasons she loved him. His best and worst quality was how much he continued to believe in people.

Klaus always took advantage of that. Riah just wanted Elijah to be safe. At the end of the day, Klaus had everything he needed to hurt any one of them and he would do it if they gave him a chance. She wanted Elijah to keep his guard up. It was the only way he’d come back to her in one piece.

“Fine. Be careful. I know _you_ trust your brother, but _I_ don’t.”

“I will be. For now, I need to have a little chat with Marcel about a witch.”

****

* * *

****

“So that's it? I'm just supposed to pack up my things and leave for good? Forget my life here and my pursuit of the cure?” Rebekah scoffed.

Elijah dragged his hand across his face. He and Rebekah had been at this for a while now. Ever since he’d come back to Mystic Falls, actually. It was giving Azariah a headache. She was sitting in the corner, waiting for this to be over. Elijah had come back for a fool’s errand and he would return for the exact same thing. He rounded on his sister.

“Oh, the cure was a fool's errand. I mean, taking it would've stripped you of everything you are, for what? More high school proms?”

“I wanted to be human. I wanted children and a family.”

They continued arguing over it. Rebekah threw up her hands in frustration. She had always wanted those things. Even when she was a little girl. Oh, Riah could still remember how excited Rebekah had been for Riah’s wedding. She’d been even more excited at the prospect of helping with a child after Erik was born. Of course, Rebekah didn’t remember that now. The cure had been the closest Rebekah ever got to that. It was gone before she even had a chance for it. She took a deep breath. She met Elijah’s eyes evenly, easily, and spoke.

“I owe him nothing. I wish him no joy, no love. I will stay here and live my life the way I want to, and if you're smart I suggest you do the same.”

She walked away, leaving Elijah and Azariah alone. He walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. Azariah was glad to hug him back. She didn’t like being apart from him, but she knew that she couldn’t go with him either, as much as she wanted to. She had already decided where she was going to go. Elijah moved away, keeping her at arm’s length.

“I can’t go, Elijah,” she said softly. “I’m sorry.”

“This could bring us all back together. Once and for all. This child-”

“I have a child of my own, Elijah. Erik could still be out there somewhere. And I need to know if he’s alive.” Riah brought a hand to his arm. “Our family is already dwindling. Finn and Kol are gone. I need to know that Erik isn’t.”

Elijah smiled softly. “I know. I-”

Azariah kissed him. She knew it would probably be the last time for a long time. She wrapped her arms around him and kept him close. She did everything she could to commit the moment to memory. His smell, his taste… all of it.

“You’ll still call me everyday, of course,” she sniffed.

“Of course I will. Where will you go?”

“Atlanta, like we planned. Once I’m there, I’m sure I can pick up a trail. I was able to keep up with you and the others for centuries. I’m sure I can do the same with Erik.”

“Stay safe.”

“You too, Elijah. If Klaus makes a move, let me know. I’ll put him in his place.”

Elijah smiled. “I have no doubts about that.”

****

* * *

****

Atlanta. Azariah had a lot of things to say about the city. She’d be lying if she said that she didn’t hope Erik was still there. She wasn’t surprised to learn that he had quit his job at the museum shortly after she and Finn had tried to talk to him. He hadn’t really listened to what they had had to say. She’d never gotten a chance to explain what had happened. Her heart wouldn’t rest with that knowledge. Her head was spinning as she thought of all the worst case scenarios. In truth, Erik was more a stranger than a child of hers. Through no fault of her own, her only blood family had become estranged.

She laid back on the hotel bed. Everything she had found was pointing her towards Alabama. She didn’t know what Erik could have found there. She supposed it was because it would be the last place anyone would think to look for him. She never should have let him go in the first place. She should have insisted that he stay or something like that. She should have stayed in Atlanta rather than running to Chicago like a coward. Running was one of the things she was best at. She’d had far over 10,000 hours of practice. She was practically a master.

Her phone started ringing. She answered it eagerly.

“Elijah?”

“Hello, Riah.”

“How are things in New Orleans?”

“Hayley’s moved into the house with us. Niklaus has plans to take everything from Marcel.”

“That’s not surprising,”

“No, it isn’t. He’s out healing the man he bit the other day. To gain Marcel’s favour.”

“Surely he doesn’t think that’s actually going to work?”

“It just might,” Elijah sighed. “How’s your search going?”

“I knew he wasn’t going to be in Atlanta, but I wasn’t thinking he’d go to Alabama next. Tuscaloosa, I believe it was.”

“Perhaps he’s planning on going to college,”

Riah shrugged. “Maybe. You’re still safe? And the child?”

“All are fine. Have you spoken to Rebekah since you left?”

“No. She’s still angry with you for leaving in the first place and even more so at me for evidently letting you go.”

Elijah chuckled. “My dramatic little sister. You’ll find Erik.”

“And you’ll keep the child and Hayley safe.”

“Always and forever.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And next chapter, we start with The Originals episodes. :)


	38. Just to Burn: Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins. Season 1 of the Originals with Azariah added in. Enjoy :)

Azariah stared at her phone screen. It had been two days since Elijah’s last call. He’d given his word that he’d update her every day and it wasn’t like him not to call. It wasn’t like him not to answer his phone. She’d already booked a flight to New Orleans that same morning. Now, she stood at the airport hoping that she was wrong. She’d given up her search for her son to find Elijah. He’d come to this damned city to help Klaus and now he suddenly was missing. There was no way that it was a coincidence. She tried to keep all of the worst possible situations out of her head, but she couldn’t. Klaus had the unfortunate tendency to stick daggers in the hearts of the other Originals when they didn’t go along with his plans or disagreed with him even slightly.

The last time that had happened, she’d been one of the unfortunate victims. Riah shivered at the thought of the dagger in her chest. She straightened out her jacket and took a deep breath. She went to the parking lot, compelling herself a car from the rental associates. She had the address of the plantation house Elijah had told her about scrawled on a piece of paper. She entered the address into her phone and started driving. When she was about halfway there, she called Rebekah. After a few rings, she finally picked up.

“Rebekah. I don’t suppose you’ve heard from your brother recently, have you?” Riah asked.

“No. I was just about to ask you the same question,” Rebekah sighed.

“Fantastic. I’m ten minutes from the house.”

She heard a commotion from the other line. It sounded like Rebekah was throwing someone against a table. Wherever she was, she was having a good time.

“I’ll meet you there, then. I swear, if Niklaus has done anything to Elijah-”

“Trust me, I’m way ahead of you. I’m already planning on snapping his neck a thousand times. As a start.”

Rebekah laughed before she hung up the phone. Azariah focused all of her attention on the road. If Klaus had done something to Elijah, he would still be in the house. Klaus never liked to have his family too far away. Just in case he needed them for something else. She’d tear that place apart to find him. Riah was tired of Klaus manipulating them all. Everytime Elijah decided to trust him, he ended up with a dagger in his back. Or his front. It didn’t matter. Klaus would always stick them in coffins when it suited him. Riah’s car slid to a stop in the driveway. Another car was already there. Rebekah was standing by the door on her phone. She was talking to Elijah. Or, his voicemail, rather. 

She waved Azariah over. Riah walked to the front door and reached for the handle. She pushed it open, welcomed by a girl coming down the stairs with a fire iron. She looked out of place among all of the expensive furniture in the house. Parts of it looked like it hadn’t been touched in years. This was where Elijah, Klaus, and Rebekah had lived, then, when they had first come to New Orleans. It had remnants of them in it. Elijah’s scent still filled the air. It was stale, like he hadn’t been home in a few days. That didn’t bode well. Klaus’s smell, on the other hand, was everywhere. She hated it. Riah crossed her arms and looked at the girl with the fire iron.

“Who the hell are you?” She asked, looking between Rebekah and Riah.

“Oh, you must be the maid. My bags are in the car. Get them, will you?”

“Rebekah, manners,” Riah sighed. “She’s not a maid. If she was, she wouldn’t be lucid and Klaus would’ve killed her already. You must be Hayley. My name is Azariah.” She held out her hand.

Hayley looked at her warily, setting down the poker and taking Riah’s hand. She looked at Rebekah. Rebekah sighed heavily.

“So you’re that werewolf girl my brother knocked up. I was expecting to see some kind of supernatural, miracle baby bump. Guess you're not showing yet.”

“You have your brother's manners.”

“And his temper, too, so watch it.”

“Rebekah, please. Be nice.” Azariah turned her attention back to Hayley. “Where's Elijah?”

“Beats me. He's long gone.”

“What do you mean, gone?” Riah’s voice was a low growl.

She of course knew what Hayley meant by gone, even if she herself didn’t know. It meant that Klaus had daggered him. She wanted to hear it. She wanted to believe that it wasn’t true and that Elijah was going to walk down those stairs any moment. A part of her was still just barely naive enough for that. She looked around the house. Klaus was somewhere here. She was going to find him.

“Well, one minute he was here making epic promises about protecting me in this predicament that a bottle of scotch and some bad decisions got me into – he was all poetic about how we're family – and then Klaus told me he bailed. Guess that's what I get for trusting a vampire.”

Riah chuckled wryly. “Elijah isn’t just some vampire. He doesn’t break promises. Klaus!” She yelled. “Get your scrawny, backstabbing ass out here! What have you done with him?!”

A pair of doors opened, revealing Klaus. He had a small, annoyed smile on his face at the sight of Azariah and Rebekah. Azariah’s instinct was to yell more, but she decided against it. She needed to hear Klaus say it himself. She doubted that he would. There was a reason he hadn’t told his supernatural baby mama about it. He knew that Azariah would have an even worse reaction than any of the others. She was on guard. He probably wouldn’t stick Rebekah in a coffin, but Azariah was another story. He’d threatened her once with separating her from Elijah. It hadn’t gone over well. Klaus crossed his arms.

“Enough with all the shouting. Ah, Azariah and Rebekah. I should have known. I assume the six dead vampires were your doing?”

“ _Six_ vampires?” Riah looked at Rebekah.

She shrugged. “They were very rude.”

Riah pinched the bridge of her nose. This was going to be a very fun trip, wasn’t it? She just wanted to find Elijah, somehow convince him to come with her to Alabama. Maybe even bring Hayley with them so they could keep her safe. Then she could continue her search for her long lost son in peace. Was that really so much to ask? She wanted to say that she liked it better alone but even that would be a lie. She could do without Klaus and his damned daggers. Riah could see that if she didn’t find Elijah tonight, she was going to have to take on his role as the family mediator. She didn’t know how he did it.

“Trying to victimize a poor, innocent girl just trying to find her way to the Quarter.” Rebekah sighed dramatically. “So sorry, were they friends of yours? Oh, that's right, you don't have any friends.”

“I do have friends. I have Marcel. You remember him, don't you? Yes, of course you do. He fancies himself the 'King of the Quarter' now, and he has these rules about killing vampires. It'll be fun to see what sort of punishment he comes up with for you.” Klaus was smiling at the thought.

“Who cares about the rules of a fake king in a city we don’t want to stay in?” Riah walked to Klaus, keeping herself just far enough away that he couldn’t get the jump on her with a dagger. “Where’s Elijah? He wouldn’t break a deal or a promise. What did you do to him?”

“Perhaps he's on holiday... or taking a long autumn nap upstairs. Well, go on. Take a look around. Rebekah can give you a tour. I’m sure she remembers this house as well as I.”

Rebekah rounded on Klaus. “I remember everything. I remember how the drunken fool of a governor hid away all of our vampire sins in exchange for gold. I remember the lavish parties the governor threw, as if to impress you. I remember finding a moment of affection with the governor's son, Emil. And I remember that even Elijah was happy, if just for a moment in spite of Riah’s absence. And you took it away from us all.”

Klaus sat down, shrugging. He didn’t see it the same way as Rebekah did. At the very least, he didn’t remember it the same. He had probably been so caught up in his own world that he didn’t care enough about the others. It was just the way that he had always been. He rarely acted in the best interests of the family if it wasn’t in his best interest, too. He lost his temper easily and acted rashly. He didn’t have self control.

“Well, he wasn't good enough for you,” Klaus said.

“No one was ever good enough for me, Nik, you made sure of that. Now where is Elijah?” Rebekah asked.

Klaus’s phone buzzed a couple of times. He checked it and immediately started to leave. Azariah grabbed his arm.

“And where the hell do you think you’re going?” she asked.

“It appears the night is not quite over, yet. I'm off for another drink with Marcel.”

“Ah, so you’re the drinking buddy of the man you’re trying to screw over. How much liquor is left in the city now?”

“Yes, what some friends do when they get together is they drink. And when they drink, they tell secrets. Marcel has somehow found a way to control the entirety of witches in the Quarter, and I aim to uncover the 'how' so I might take it for myself. Finding Elijah didn't make my to-do list today.” He started to walk out of the door, pausing for a moment. “Welcome to the city, Azariah. And welcome home, little sister.”

The door closed behind him. Azariah groaned in frustration. She looked over at Hayley, standing on the stairs again. Rebekah had her arms crossed.

“Well, I suppose we’d all better start looking for the good Mikaelson brother,” Riah sighed.

Rebekah led them to a spiral staircase. Azariah really didn’t have any idea where anything in this house was. She had only been to New Orleans once, a couple of centuries ago. She’d stayed for a day and almost immediately fled. She wondered if she would have liked it in this city. Even with Klaus in the same house. She thought about Elijah. How she had struggled with her feelings for him for so long. It seemed that every time she found happiness with him, it was taken away by something or someone. Usually Klaus or her own fears. Mostly Klaus, though.

“The governor had lots of secret rooms.” Rebekah started. “I'll show you his favorite.”

Rebekah handed Riah a torch and opened a secret cellar. It was dusty and covered in cobwebs. There were the coffins. Each one had the Mikaelson crest on it, along with an initial so Klaus could keep track of whose was whose. Azariah shuddered as she saw hers. Covered in dust now, but that could change at any moment. The last thing she wanted was to be back in one of those things again. She held a hand over her chest, feeling her heartbeat. She was still alive. Klaus had kept a coffin for her because he had always assumed she’d come back one day. It hadn’t been her choice to come back. She’d been dragged back in by Mystic Falls. By curses and doppelgangers and all other manner of horrible things.

She started walking around, looking for Elijah’s. She found Esther’s. Finn and Kol, too. Their coffins were officially empty for the rest of time. Not even their ash was inside. Just gone. She let out a heavy sigh.

“You think Klaus killed him.”

Hayley sounded genuinely shocked. She truly had no idea just how cruel Klaus could be when he wanted. Riah knew. She had seen and felt it far too many times. 

“We can't be killed, silly girl. That doesn't stop Klaus from finding ways to torture us. He has a set of mystical silver daggers. One in the heart sends us into a deep slumber. Klaus gets his jollies from keeping us in a box, until he decides to pull the dagger out. That must be what he's done to Elijah. This one's mine.”

Hayley looked between the two of them incredulously. “He keeps your coffins on standby.”

“He likes to be prepared for when his family members inevitably disappoint him.”

“Yes, and now he’s done something with Elijah’s. It isn’t here!” Riah kicked Kol’s coffin, knocking it to the ground. She started pacing.

“Relax, love. We’ll find him.” Rebekah promised. 

“I feel sick.”

“Welcome to the family, love. You should've run the second you realized Elijah was gone.”

“Yeah, well, the witches have put some sort of hex on me. As long as I'm carrying this baby, I can't leave New Orleans. If I do, they kill me.”

Riah laughed dryly. “Well, you’d better find a way to break it, then. Klaus is probably shopping for your box as we speak. Once that child’s born, you’ll end up just like us.”

Hayley shuddered. Riah had no intentions of sugar coating this for her. Some people would see her as a miracle mother, carrying the Original Hybrid’s child. Azariah knew better. She felt pity for Hayley, truly. The poor girl was being brought into a family with a thousand years of drama. And the father of her child was a raging psychopath that had no true sense of what it meant to be a part of a family. He was cruel. He was evil. Riah crossed her arms. It looked like she was going to have to be the one to keep Elijah’s promise for him. She’d hate to see his word be broken because of Klaus.

They headed back upstairs. Hayley pretty much immediately retired to her room. Riah couldn’t blame her. She had a lot to think about now that she was an honorary Mikaelson. Just like Azariah was. Riah was just lucky that her child was unknown to all but two of the family and wasn’t Klaus’s son. Just Finn’s. Who had tried to kill Azariah.

Their family wasn’t perfect. 

Azariah and Rebekah decided they needed to have a little chat with Sophie Deveraux. She was the witch that Elijah had talked to when he got to town. It was as good an idea as any. They were going to need a witch to find Elijah, anyway. It would be a lot faster than trying to tear the city down brick by brick. Riah was willing to do that, too. It would just be really time consuming and she wasn’t looking forward to how much her hands were going to hurt when she did that.

Sophie was in a bar. Rousseau’s. Rebekah and Azariah both entered, remaining hidden from the witch. The door slammed closed behind them. Sophie picked up a knife. She looked around, trying to find something she wasn’t going to. She called out for Marcel angrily. Riah grabbed Sophie’s hand, knocking the knife to the ground.

“Not quite,” Riah said. “I trust you know who we are?”

“Yeah. I know.”

“Wonderful. Then the three of us need to have a chat.”

****

* * *

****

Sophie led them to the cemetery. She invited them in, explaining that it was consecrated ground. They needed some kind of defense against the vampires. She was taking a big risk. All four Original vampires were now invited inside. It was a big deal. The witches were making themselves vulnerable. Azariah didn’t care about all of that. She was more concerned about getting Elijah back and getting out of New Orleans. She didn’t want Erik’s trail to get cold. The sooner she found Elijah, the sooner she could get back to Alabama. Words she’d never thought would cross her mind.

They started to walk among the burial vaults. Riah crossed her arms. She just wanted to get this over with and get the locator spell that they needed. The longer that Elijah was missing, the more worried she was getting. She’d of course been separated from him before. For a lot longer than a couple days. She had gotten so used to his presence. More so than she’d thought. She wanted to kill Klaus for this. At the very least get a witch to do that desiccation spell again. Let him rot for a few decades so he could see how it felt.

“So, if I had to guess, knowing Klaus's history, Elijah has a dagger in his chest. It's a magical object, you're a witch. Do a locator spell, locate the dagger, locate Elijah.” Rebekah crossed her arms.

“I can't use magic. It's punishable by death – Marcel's rules,” Sophie said.

“What use is a witch that can’t do magic?” Azariah scoffed. 

“What do you think we’re going to do if you don’t give us what we want?” 

“Not much.” Sophie smirked. “I've been linked, so anything you do to me, you do to Hayley.”

“Then I suppose you’re lucky that Elijah cares about her. Otherwise, I’d probably snap your neck right here.”

“Calm down, Rebekah. We don’t need to be rash. How did Marcel become so powerful in the first place? From what I’ve heard, he wasn’t always like this.”

Sophie explained that Marcel had found a way to tell when witches did magic. Anyone who did was killed. Her sister had been one of the witches. She died linking Sophie and Hayley. They couldn’t just leave the Quarter. Their magic was ancestral. The farther away they were from where their ancestors had been buried, the weaker their magic was, until eventually it was just gone. It seemed like regardless of what happened, they were useless. Witches that couldn’t do magic. They weren’t really witches at all. Just another nuisance that Azariah didn’t really have any reason to pay attention to. She started to look around the cemetery. She wondered if Klaus had left Elijah somewhere in this place. It was like hiding a needle in a stack of identical needles. 

No, the witches wouldn’t allow something like that. Even if they would, Klaus wasn’t foolish enough to let witches have the body of an Original. There was too much risk that they’d learn the property of the daggers and make more. Possibly better ones. They could even potentially find a way to kill _him_ without the White Oak Stake.

“We can’t leave without leaving behind our family,” Sophie said.

“Well, family's overrated. Look at me. I'm back in a city that's given me nothing but heartache, looking for a brother who's hell-bent on protecting a baby I don't care about.”

“And I just want to find Elijah, baby or no.”

“I find that hard to believe. You're here, aren't you?”

“I'm here for Elijah,” Rebekah scoffed. “The instant I find him, I'm gone. He was the one who idiotically believed this baby would be Niklaus' redemption. And now he's missing, probably at the hands of Klaus himself. And you were foolish enough to believe that Elijah could convince Klaus to go against Marcel, when everyone knows that they have a history.”

“Klaus sired Marcel. I'm aware.”

“You don't understand. Marcel is not just some guy that Klaus turned into a vampire. Klaus loved him like a son. I was there the day that they met. We were burying Emil, the governor's only son... or so we thought. Turns out the governor had another son, from a mother that he owned.”

Marcel was a slave. And Klaus saved him. That actually… made… a lot of sense. Klaus had been relentlessly abused and beaten by Mikael. If he saw someone else, a child, being forced to go through the same thing, he probably would have killed whoever was doing it. And adopted the child. That made it so much worse that Klaus was working against Marcel now. He didn’t just betray his family. He betrayed everyone that he cared about while constantly fearing that they would do the same to him. Talk about hypocritical. Riah couldn’t understand what good Elijah still saw in his brother. Ever the optimist.

Sophie looked equally shocked to hear the story. Rebekah started to walk away from them both.

“Klaus saw himself in the boy. He remembered how our father used to beat him. He, too, was the bastard child of a man who saw him as nothing but a beast. And that is why your plan will fail. All you've done is bring back together two long-lost souls. Without Elijah between them, who knows what they'll do.”

Azariah shook her head. “So this is a fool’s errand on all sides, then. Fine. I’ll find him on my own.”

Azariah left the cemetery without another word. She didn’t know New Orleans as well as she would have liked. Certainly not as well as Rebekah and Klaus, but that wouldn’t stop her. Even if she had to leave and find a different witch in a different fucking city, she was going to get Elijah back. Ah, but then there was Hayley to worry about. She couldn’t in good conscience leave Hayley here alone with Klaus. Rebekah was sweet and she would help, of course, but she clearly didn’t care about the baby. Azariah wasn’t even sure that _she_ cared about the baby. It was going to be family whether she wanted it or not. So she wasn’t leaving then.

Riah groaned in frustration. Elijah should have just come with her to Atlanta. Let Klaus deal with this on his own. He wanted to abandon the rest of the family all of the time. If that was what he really wanted, then he shouldn’t have kept dragging them all into his drama. His plans. Whatever it was that he wanted to call it. She hated it. She hated letting Klaus back into her life just for him to take something away. It was getting old. It was the whole reason she had left in the first place.

For a moment, she entertained the idea again. Running away. She didn’t have the strength to do it a second time. It had taken everything just to leave back then and she’d struggled with it the entire time she was away. Her fear of Klaus had always won out. The only reason she was staying now was because she loved Elijah. And she couldn’t forget that Klaus was, in a weird, twisted way, her brother, too. He didn’t seem to be able to live up to it, unfortunately.

Riah headed back to the plantation house. She needed to clear her head. The only good thing she had to say about Niklaus right now was that he was rather good at picking out alcohol. She was looking forward to a really good glass of scotch while she scoured the internet for the perfect place to hide a coffin holding a thousand year old vampire stabbed by his brother in this city. She walked inside and found the liquor cabinet, pouring herself a glass of scotch. She took a sip. Just as Riah was going to allow herself to relax, she heard Klaus shouting outside. He was always shouting at something or someone. It was probably Rebekah. She sighed and headed outside. 

Klaus had two bodies over his shoulder. Rebekah was dragging another behind her. Hayley was trailing along behind them both. She looked a little guilty. Riah leaned against one of the pillars on the porch. Klaus threw the bodies onto the pile, still yelling. 

“ _This_ is why I told you never to leave the house. Werewolves are banned in the Quarter. I had a plan, and your little nighttime stroll put it all in peril! Leave him!” Klaus pointed at Rebekah, trying to throw her own vampire friend onto the pile. He was still alive. She stopped at his command, letting the leg she was holding fall to the ground. “You've done enough, don't you think? Leaving a trail of bodies like a road map to my door?!”

“If I hadn't overheard this lot bragging about werewolf heads, everyone here would be screwed. And don't give me that crap about having a plan. You've had all the time in the world to execute a plan, and no one's seen you do a damn thing! Elijah made a deal to protect _your_ child, so that it could save you from your selfish, rotten self. But you obviously don't give a damn about the child or Elijah, because what have you done to honor it?”

“I have done everything! Let me spell it out for you, shall I? From the day I arrived, Marcel hasn't trusted me. From Day One, he's had his vampires ingest toxic vervain which, as you know, little sister, protects them from my mind control. I needed a spy, someone on the inside with me who Marcel would never suspect. So, I created a Day Zero and got there first. Marcel had just lost six vampires, thanks to your little murder spree, and he needed new recruits. So, I made the new one mine, before he'd had even a drop of vervain. And this one,” Klaus grabbed the vampire Rebekah had dropped, dragging him towards the house, “I'm gonna drain him of vervain, compel him to believe his mates found religion and moved to Utah, so that he can explain to Marcel why he lost three more vampires tonight.” He pushed past Azariah on his way into the house. “Does anyone have any more questions? No? Good, because I have a question. Hayley, what were you doing in the bloody French Quarter in the first place? Answer me!”

“Enough! Leave her alone,” Riah said.

Hayley stepped up to Klaus. She showed no fear. Even after everything that Rebekah and Azariah had shown her, she wasn’t afraid of Klaus. 

“You wanna know what I was doing? I was buying poison, so I could put your little baby out of its misery.”

Klaus ran at Hayley with his vampire speed, pinning her to the door by the neck. She started gasping for air. Azariah was quick to rip him off of her and to the ground. He bared his fangs at Azariah. She bared hers right back. She instinctively pushed Hayley behind her. She wasn’t going to let Klaus do anything to Hayley. Not just for Elijah, but because no one deserved to be stuck around Klaus and treated like that. Klaus ran at Riah. For a second, she feared he’d dagger her. Instead, he sunk his fangs into her neck. Rebekah pulled Klaus off of Azariah. Riah held her hand to her neck. She could feel the venom running through her veins already. 

She ignored it in favour of scolding Klaus.

“You will _not_ touch her again!” Riah yelled. “For someone who doesn’t want anything to do with this child, you seem to be rather upset by this decision. You’re allowed to _want_ this, Klaus. You’re allowed to care about something other than yourself for once. That’s what Elijah was trying to get you to see, you fool.”

Klaus sat down on the stairs. Riah didn’t move away from Hayley. She didn’t trust that Klaus wouldn’t do something rash again. Hayley was still massaging her throat. She’d have some nasty bruises for a while. Werewolves didn’t heal as quickly as vampires. It wasn’t going to be a pleasant sight to see. Oh, Elijah would be furious when he heard about this. Riah took a breath. Rebkah sat next to her brother. Klaus looked up at Azariah.

“I gave Elijah to Marcel.”

“You did what?!” She rushed at him, grabbing him by his collar. She threw him against the wall. 

“Easy, Azariah.”

“You bartered him like some… some… _object?_ Your own _brother?!_ ”

“Riah, I have a plan. Gain Marcel's trust, dismantle his empire, honor Elijah's wish that that baby be born. I am executing that plan the only way I know how. If you don't like it, there's the door. See if I care.”

“Get him back.” Azariah spoke with a low voice. “Or I’ll make good on my promise to you, Niklaus.”

She touched her neck again. It was still bleeding. She growled under her breath and went outside again. She was going to need to get away from Hayley soon. Before the hallucinations started, at least. And the blood craze. She hadn’t been bitten by a werewolf in a long time now. At least it couldn’t kill her. She wiped the blood off on her jeans. Rebekah walked over to her, grimacing at the sight of the wound.

“You should ask Klaus for his blood.” Rebekah rubbed Riah’s shoulder.

She scoffed, shaking her head. “Absolutely not. I don’t want anything from him. Besides, it’s not like this will kill me. I can handle a little bit of discomfort.”

Riah hated this. Klaus knew that he couldn’t use the daggers as effectively to take care of her anymore so he found another way to do it, instead. She sighed in frustration. Well, she’d at least make it inconvenient for him, too. Take all of the blood bags that he had stored away and take them upstairs with her. Rebekah agreed to help barricade Riah in a room. She didn’t want to risk hurting Hayley. Not after she’d gotten this bite trying to keep the girl safe from Klaus. 

Marcel had Elijah. If she was certain that she could get him back on her own, she’d attack that compound Rebekah had told her about. She’d scour the place until she found Elijah’s coffin and take that dagger from his chest. She imagined the two of them tearing apart the vampires that stood in their way as they tried to leave. It was a thought. She couldn’t do anything like that if Klaus had anything to say about it. He was just waiting for Riah or Rebekah to do something so he could barter them off, too. Rebekah gave her one last look before heading inside.

Azariah leaned against the railing of the porch and took a deep breath. She needed to get him back sooner rather than later. She didn’t know how long she had before any sign of Erik disappeared. She didn’t even know where to start in Tuscaloosa to look for him in the first place. And now, on top of Elijah being missing and her son possibly being dead, she was going to have to put up with some kind of hallucination of her past. She wasn’t looking forward to it, but it was better than crawling to Klaus to ask for any of his blood. 

“I know you don't know me very well... but thanks. I appreciate what you did in there,” Hayley said, walking over to Azariah.

“Of course. Can’t have Klaus forgetting his place.” Riah said. “And he’s certainly put me in mine.”

Azariah put her hand over her neck again. Hayley walked over to her and looked at the bite. It was only going to get worse. And then, just like magic, it would be like nothing had ever been there. One of the many perks of being an Original vampire.

“That looks really bad,” Hayley grimaced.

“Yes, it will for a while. It won’t kill me, don’t worry.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why are you here? I mean, you and Klaus obviously don’t get along. Considering your family and all.”

“Klaus isn’t my family. I’m not a Mikaelson.”

“You’re not? But you’re an Original. I thought-”

“I was adopted, really. And then married in. To their eldest, Finn. But… it’s Elijah. I’ve always been in love with Elijah. Since I was a child. That’s why I’m still here. That’s why I keep coming back to Klaus, even though I really don’t want to. And that’s why I want to snap his neck for pawning Elijah off.”

“So why don’t you just get him yourself?”

“You did see the coffins, yes? And even if those weren’t an issue, you can see what he did when I tried to save the life of the mother of his child.”

“Well, if a couple of antique steak knives are the only thing keeping you from going after Elijah, then here.” Hayley handed Riah two silver daggers. The last two silver daggers. “Nothing left to fear, right?”

Azariah grinned. “Nothing at all. Thank you, Hayley.” Riah hugged her. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to head in.”

Azariah went upstairs to the room she had picked out, laying out blood bags on the bed and making sure that the door was secure. She laid down, staring at the ceiling as the first of the hallucinations hit her.

**_1820_ **

She was tired. She was tired of running and of being alone. She didn’t want it anymore. It had been so long since she had seen anyone in her family. It had been so long since she had seen Elijah. It was starting to take its toll on her. She wished that she wasn’t doing this. She wished that she wasn’t being so weak. She was still afraid of Klaus. Riah shuddered at the thought of the daggers he had. She didn’t want to end up in a coffin. She knew, she _knew_ that if she came back, it wouldn’t be the same. Nothing would ever be the same because she had run away. She had abandoned them all.

She’d be in a box for at least a century to make up for it.

Of course, for her it would be an instant and then she would be by Elijah’s side again. She’d be able to laugh with Rebekah again. Scold Kol while helping him with whatever he was planning. Maybe even convince Klaus to let Finn wake up, too. At least she’d be back with her family. 

That was why she was in New Orleans now. She knew that they had taken up shop there a century or two ago. They’d really made a name for themselves without _actually_ making a name for themselves. The only reason Azariah knew where they were was because she had been keeping tabs on them since Bulgaria. She always knew where the Mikaelson family was. They were her family, too. She just couldn’t take being around Niklaus. Now she couldn’t take being without the others. How pathetic her self-given exile had made her.

Azariah took a deep breath as she walked down the street. Her dress was a bit more flashy than she had originally thought. In New York, she fit right in, but the bright blue made her stick out in the streets of New Orleans. She certainly hadn’t been expecting that. She shuffled her feet self consciously. She was going to need to get over that. After all, she was going to find the Mikaelsons. Nothing more flashy than that family. She started towards the compound that she had heard was the main residence of the vampires. That was where they would be. 

She stopped across the street from the main entrance, doing her best to stay out of sight. That was when she saw him. Through the second story window. It was Elijah. His hair was cut short, but it suited him. Of course it did. He was wearing a suit of deep read. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of him. After all this time, he still looked… perfect. Her heart pounded against her chest. She was making the right decision if it brought her back to him. She just had to go and knock on the door. She took a deep breath, building up her courage. She took one step when someone joined Elijah. It was a woman. He smiled widely at the sight of her. 

And he kissed her.

It was a passionate kiss. A kiss of a man in love, fully and completely. Azariah’s heart shattered. She turned on her heel and walked away. Had she truly thought that he would wait for her return? Elijah’s heart would of course have moved on after so long. She was a fool. Oh, she never should have come to that damned city. She knew better. She had left for a reason. The thing that had convinced her to come back… it wasn’t hers anymore. It had never been hers to begin with. 

****

**_2011_ **

Azariah woke up with a groan. Of course that had been the hallucination. She was back in New Orleans for the first time in two centuries, after all. She sat up slowly, reaching for the wound. It was completely healed. That was a good sign, at least. It meant that the worst was over. She looked around the room. It was scattered with blood bags, blood, and a few torn up books. She couldn’t remember doing any of that. It wasn’t exactly a good sign, but at least she hadn’t left the room. Azariah pushed the dresser away from the door and headed downstairs. She was immediately greeted with the scent of blood in the air. She knew what it was.

She turned the corner into the kitchen and saw Klaus holding a blonde upright. He had already bitten into her neck but he hadn’t had anything to drink for himself. He looked up at Azariah with a small smile.

“Hello, love. Care for a bite?” He asked.

“Klaus, you can take your half-assed apology and go fuck yourself with it. I don’t want anything else from you until your brother is back in this house. Do we understand each other?” Riah smiled as sweetly and as falsely as she could. 

Klaus pouted and bit into the girls neck. No use letting blood go to waste, apparently. He could’ve just sent her on her way, but that was too easy. She grabbed a bottle of water to get the bitter taste of venom out of her mouth and started towards the front door. Elijah wasn’t going to find himself while he was daggered in a box, after all. Klaus let the body hit the floor and started after Riah. She wasn’t interested in anything he had to say. She had unpleasant memories on her mind because of him. The last thing that she needed was something else he had ever touched. Or thought about. 

They were both shocked when the door opened and Rebekah stumbled in. She looked a little worse for wear, almost as if she had been attacked. She quickly composed herself, regarding Klaus and Azariah before she spoke. She looked at Niklaus.

“You were right. The girl, Cami – she's the key. Marcel likes her, and because of that I got to see the secret weapon of his that you've been going on about,” Rebekah said.

“Well, don't stand on ceremony. What is it?” Klaus crossed his arms. He could barely contain the light in his eyes, all signs of remorse for what he’d done to Azariah less than 24 hours ago gone.

“It's not a 'what', it's a 'who'. A girl, Davina. She can't be more than sixteen, and I have never felt power like that.”

“A witch is stopping other witches?” Riah questioned.

“She's not just any witch, she's something I've never seen before, something beyond powerful, and now because of you she has Elijah. Who knows what she could do to him.”

“This witch has Elijah? Where is he?”

Rebekah stopped to think. She opened her mouth and closed it quickly in confusion. She had a vacant expression on her face as she tried to remember where she had just come from. It wasn’t unlike when someone under compulsion tried to remember something. That wasn’t a good sign. Originals couldn’t be compelled, but their minds could still be messed with. That much had become apparent with Silas. He had been one hell of a witch. It took a lot of power to do something like that.

“That clever bitch. I don't know,” Rebekah scoffed.

“What's wrong?” Klaus asked.

“She wiped my memory of the location. Marcel possesses a weapon bigger and more powerful than an Original, and you handed our brother to him! How many times will Elijah forgive you? How long until his hope for your redemption finally dies?”

Azariah ran a hand through her hair. It had been bad enough when Elijah was just with another vampire, but now he was the hostage of some superpowered teenage witch. No doubt she was already trying to figure out spells that could make an Original weaker for Marcel so he could get the upperhand. If he’d been raised by Klaus, he was probably just as paranoid. 

“I did what I had to do! Marcel took our home!”

“And our home is worthless without family. I am finding Elijah – _whatever_ it takes. Are you going to help me?”

“Whatever it takes.” Azariah nodded.

They both looked at Klaus expectantly. He crossed his arms. A dark look crossed over his face at the thought of his brother being in the hands of something truly dangerous.

“Whatever it takes.”


	39. Just to Burn: Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a little longer to get out than I wanted it to :( Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter

Azariah ran her hand across the spines of the journals. Centuries worth of memories. Thoughts of Elijah as their family moved, always on the run from one thing or another. She used to see him writing but she’d never braved a peek into what he had to say before. It was the closest that she was going to get to talking to him for at least a few more days. She gently pulled one of the older volumes from the shelf, flipping through the ancient pages. She ran a finger over the ink. Elijah had always been very careful with his script, even as it changed with the times. She settled into a chair and started reading. 

_June 1114._

_My brother has turned the woman he claims he loved into a vampire. It is the ultimate betrayal of his marriage. I came to Azariah’s chambers and found her in tears. She sought comfort in my arms and I am ashamed to say that I succumbed to my desire for her. I can’t help but feel that I have taken advantage of her in this time when she is most vulnerable. Even so, as I lay with her next to me, the sunlight dancing against her pale skin, shining in her beautiful hair, I cannot help but be overwhelmed with joy. The sight of her is breathtaking. And she is mine._

Azariah couldn’t help but blush at his words. She already knew how he felt about her. He had told her, and shown her, many, many times. Still, every time she was reminded she felt like she was a child again, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips and running back to the festival. Things had always seemed much simpler in those days. She was a child who had been in love. Now, she was well into adulthood, still in love, and still felt like that little girl sharing her first kiss. She flipped through several more pages and stopped.

_August 1359._

_I have noticed a difference in my siblings. Our bond strains beneath the pressure of our life as vampires. Each day removes them further from the humanity we once possessed. My sweet sister, Rebekah, has grown quite indifferent to brutality. Kol continues his viciousness. He grows careless as he grows older. Even Azariah has begun to change. My love has insisted that we cannot continue a relationship in good conscience. I fear she is right, but the longer we are apart, the more I notice the way she loses parts of herself. I cannot keep her together if I am not allowed to help her the ways I know how._

_However, the true problem remains my brother, Niklaus. He continues to hide his loneliness with cruelty. Still, I cling to the hope that I, as their eldest brother, can lead them down the correct path, a path charged with the power of a family united. For if I fail, our family's legacy will end in darkness._

She sighed and closed the volume, setting it back on it’s shelf and pulling another one down. She had been so afraid of Ayana’s words and warnings in those days. A relationship doomed to blood and death. It all seemed so dramatic now. They had seen plenty of both of those since they had been turned into vampires. It came with the territory of the species. They _were_ dead. She sat down again. Reading his words, even if they were centuries old, made her feel close to Elijah again. It was the best that she was going to get until they worked on this stupid plan to get Elijah back from Marcel and Davina. She shuddered to think of all the things that witch could be doing to her beloved while he slept. 

_July 1820._

_I saw her. I swear it was truly Azariah. I was in my office. Celeste came to visit me and while we were embraced, I caught a glimpse of Riah through the window. My mind tells me that it was simply an illusion, a wish that she might finally return home to me, but my heart says it was truly her. For some reason, she had come to New Orleans. She was quite clear in her letter. She will not come back to us while Niklaus is present. I love Azariah, more than I could have ever thought possible, even after 300 years apart. She has asked of me the one thing I cannot give her. I cannot abandon my brother, especially not now that he is so close to true happiness. Perhaps, once he has banished his loneliness, I can track her down. Bring her home to me._

She closed the book suddenly. She of course wanted to know what he had been through while she was away but she wasn’t ready for something like that. She hadn’t realised that he had ever seen her that day. She had run away so quickly that she didn’t even stop to check if the others were happy, too. She was rash. She was… jealous, for lack of a better word. It was foolish and she knew that. It had been almost 400 years since she and Elijah had even kissed each other on the cheek by 1820. She shouldn’t have been shocked to see him with another woman. She had seen it in person before she left. Both of them had pursued relationships with others. All of them failed quickly. Riah just hadn’t been expecting to see him kiss the woman with the passion that she had. And of course it was the only thing that she could picture now because Niklaus’s venom had brought it to the front of her thoughts.

She pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes tight. He would be back with them soon. Then, she could get all of the awful thoughts out her her head because he would be in her arms again. And she would leave. Azariah sighed. She was going to leave fairly soon after Elijah was home. She still needed to find Erik. She couldn’t just forget about him. She made a promise to herself that she was going to find her son, dead or alive. She needed to explain everything to him. He had to know what his grandmother had done to them both. And more than that. She was the only connection he was ever going to have to his father again. Finn was dead and, provided that Erik wasn’t from his sireline, that meant it was up to Azariah to tell him what kind of a person Finn had been when he was alive.

Hayley knocked on the doorframe, pulling Azariah from her thoughts. She shook her head and set the journal to the side and smiled at her. Hayley truly was a sweet girl. She wasn’t going to fit in with this family. That was good. They needed a little something different to keep them on their toes. Riah smiled and stood, welcoming Hayley’s presence.

“Good morning,” Azariah said.

“Hey. You’re in good spirits.” Hayley crossed her arms.

“Well, at least someone thinks so. DId you need something?”

“Kind of. I was hoping I might learn a little bit more about this family. It might prepare me for… whatever this is.”

She gestured loosely to her stomach. Azariah understood that feeling much better than most. She looked around the study. It was filled with journals, notes, first edition books… all manner of history. No shortage of which somehow involved Klaus. Riah picked up the journal she had been reading. With a certain level of hesitation, she held it out to Hayley. It contained a lot of history. Not even Azariah knew everything that Elijah had written over the years, She was reluctant to hand it to anyone. Hayley was a part of this family now. She deserved to know who she was living with. Hayley’s fingers wrapped around the leather binding. She pulled it against her chest.

“Elijah’s a very thorough man. Anything you could possibly want to know about the last thousand years of Mikaelson family history is going to be in those journals.”

Hayley nodded. She really was taking all of this in stride. Azariah was impressed. A part of her had been expecting a scared little lamb of a thing. She much preferred the woman that wasn’t afraid to stand up to Klaus. He needed more people that would put him in his place. Now that Azariah knew the exact whereabouts of all but one of the silver daggers, she didn’t have to worry as much about speaking her mind. Or doing whatever she needed to do to find Elijah as quickly as she could. She didn’t want her thoughts to be plagued with what _could_ be happening to him. She had to trust that this plan was going to work. If it didn’t, their backup plan would. It had to.

Riah left Hayley alone in the study and headed downstairs. Klaus was already there, leaning against the doorframe to his personal study while Rebekah came through the front door. Azariah could still smell the stink of burning vampires in the air. It was truly awful. She wrinkled her nose to try and forget about it entirely. That hadn’t been a particularly pleasant night for anyone. Rebekah put her hands on her hips and started pouting.

“I can’t believe the two of you disposed of those vampires without me. You know how I love to set things on fire,” she said.

Klaus smirked at his little sister. “Was I supposed to leave them to rot in the front lawn? Besides, they were my responsibility. They attacked the helpless pregnant girl who’s carrying my child.”

“I’m shocked you care, Niklaus,” Riah joked, “and she’s hardly helpless.”

“ _She_ would like to know what the plan is.” Hayley walked towards them, the book still clutched tightly to her chest.

“Well, that depends what plan you mean, love-- my plan for global domination, Rebekah's plan to find love in a cruel, cruel world?”

Rebekah grabbed a pencil from the desk beside her. She threw it at Klaus. He was able to catch it easily before it could embed itself in his face. Azariah smiled.

“The plan to rescue Elijah. You know, the good brother? The one who is now in the possession of your mortal enemy after you stabbed him in the back?” Hayley sighed.

“In the front, if we're being specific.”

It was Azariah’s turn to throw a pencil at Klaus. He caught it and glared at her. She glared right back. He could try to have a little bit more tact. He was such an ass. She was only staying here for Elijah at this point. She knew that she could put up with anything Klaus had to throw at her if she kept that in mind,

“You said that you would get him back. So is there a plan, or what? “

“Okay. Well, firstly, Marcel is not my mortal enemy-- he's my friend. Albeit one who is unaware that I'm trying to sabotage his hold over the supernatural community of the French Quarter, but a friend nonetheless. And secondly, I daggered Elijah in order to gain Marcel's trust. If I had known he would place my brother in the hands of a particularly nasty teenage witch, I certainly would have weighed my options a bit differently. And thirdly,” Klaus turned to Rebekah with his signature smile, “sister, please.”

“And thirdly, the plan, as you have demanded, is for Niklaus to simply ask Marcel for Elijah back.”

“That's... that's not the whole plan, is it?” Hayley turned to Azariah. “Riah?”

She smiled softly. “Klaus is a horrible person and an even worse sibling, but he is the most diabolical of us all.”

“And that's only the Plan A, love! There's always a Plan B.”

“And what's Plan B?”

“War.” Klaus smiled.

****

* * *

****

Azariah sighed as she watched this kid’s pitiful attempts at torture. She knew that he was new to being a vampire and all, but he could have at least attempted to make it seem like he knew what he was doing. Besides, it wasn’t like they were making him torture a human. That would be an entirely different story and she’d understand it completely. This was just a vampire. Not even a truly important vampire besides the fact that he had tried to hurt Hayley. She knew that this kid, Josh, didn’t really have a need to know that or resent this vampire for that fact, but Riah did. Klaus wanted his new little minion to get the hang of it, though. That was why he had handed Josh the pitchfork and shown him the strung-up victim.

Josh stabbed the vampire softly again, grimacing as he did. He didn’t even break skin. It probably wouldn’t have even left a bruise on a human. Riah pinched her nose and shook her head. This was going to be more difficult than she thought. She really didn’t want to bother with compelling the kid, but it was becoming more likely that she was going to have to resort to petty tricks and mind control. Klaus came downstairs, just getting off the phone with Rebekah.

“You couldn’t have picked a better minion, Klaus,” Riah said sarcastically. “Truly a keeper here.”

Klaus sighed and took the pitchfork from Josh. “I ordered you to drain him of blood. What's taking so long?”

“Sorry. I'm not, like, medieval-torture-expert-guy,” Josh stuttered through his sentence anxiously.

Klaus shoved the pitchfork through the vampire’s torso, earning him a loud grunt of pain and a lot of blood. Josh grimaced again. Riah pushed off of the wall and took the pitchfork herself. She handed it back to Josh. He looked between her and Klaus.

“What did he do to you, anyway?”

“It's not about what he did. It's about what he's going to do when we're done here, which is whatever I want him to, just like you. For example,” Klaus stared into Josh’s eyes, compelling him, “drive this through his torso.”

Josh did as he was told without a second thought. As the order was carried out, his face was overtaken with horror at his actions. That was the perks of compulsion. Making people do what they didn’t want to. Riah had hoped it wouldn’t come to compulsion to torture this vampire, but Josh seemed weak willed. She mused that they’d probably be able to control him even if he was on vervain just on fear alone. Josh pulled the pitchfork back, looking at the tool turned weapon in his hands.

“That is crazy. I didn't want to do it, but I did it anyway.”

“Compulsion,” Riah said. “A perk of being a vampire, which you are now. Vampires can compel humans. Originals, like Klaus and myself, can compel vampires. No one compels an Original. Understand?”

Josh nodded quickly. He swallowed loudly to try and hide his fear. He really was only here because he was useful. He never would have become a vampire if it hadn’t been for Klaus’s intervention in his life. It wasn’t a great reason to turn someone, but it was already done. The only thing Riah could do now was go along with the plan to return Elijah to them.

“That is how a brand-new nightwalker such as yourself is here doing _my_ bidding with no one the wiser,” Klaus said.

“But I never had my guts drained out of me.”

“Yes. That, young Joshua, is because I got to you before you had even a drop of herbal vervain in your system. You see, it prevents compulsion. Marcel has had his whole crew taking it since I returned to town, and that is why our friend here needs to be bled dry of it, so I can compel him to follow my every command. And with my brother currently in captivity awaiting rescue, we can't afford to be gentle about it, can we?”

Klaus took the pitchfork again, running it through his hostage’s abdomen and twisting it roughly. Blood spilled onto the stone. Josh cringed. He was still getting used to the smell of blood, even vampire blood, being so enticing. It wasn’t easy. She was surprised that he hadn’t lost control yet. It was impressive. Well, for a newbie, anyway. Klaus’s phone started to ring. He ripped the pitchfork back towards him and handed it to Josh again.

“Be quick about it. I have an army to build, and one compelled minion does not an army make.” He and Azariah walked away from the cellar as he answered the call. “Well?”

“You were right about the traitor. Luckily, she's just a kid and she doesn't know anything about us and what we're up to. Do you want to hear the part that's gonna please you the most?” Rebekah said.

Klaus smiled. He and Azariah shared a glance. At least someone was having a little bit of success today.

“Oh, do tell!”

“She's in love with someone in Marcel's inner circle. Guess who it is?”

“Right-hand-man type, favors silly caps?”

“Two points for you. Thierry is fraternizing with the enemy.”

“Well, that means he just unwittingly became the key to our entire plan.”

“I told you you'd be pleased.”

“Oh, to be young and in love in a city where witches and vampires are at war. How very tragic.”

“Invite Sophie over,” Riah said, “we need to have a little chat.”

“Will do. We’ll be there shortly.”

Rebekah hung up the phone. Klaus was smiling still. Azariah put her hands on her hips. That was going to make everything so much easier. Now, they would actually be able to do the locator spell to find Elijah. Riah had been wracking her brain trying to think of a way to convince Sophie Deveraux that it was the only way they would continue to cooperate with her. For a while, she’d been concerned that they’d have to use Rebekah or that girl, Cami, to seduce Davina’s location out of Marcel. She wasn’t completely opposed to the idea, but they needed Elijah back, that much was certain. _She_ needed Elijah back. 

She headed upstairs. She’d had her fill of torture for the day. Besides, they were having company. She put on a kettle to make some tea. Her nerves were jumping more than she’d realised. She took a few deep breaths to keep herself calm. Whether it was the anticipation of having Elijah home after all this time or the nightmares that wouldn’t leave her alone, she couldn’t tell. Either way, she hoped that the tea would be enough to keep her head straight. This plan needed to go smoothly. She needed to be her best self. It was the only way. She had failed enough people in this family. Riah didn’t need to add Elijah to that list.

Rebekah came home with Sophie Deveraux in tow. Azariah led them to the study and closed the door. Klaus was already inside, sitting at his desk. This was a delicate manner and werewolves weren’t exactly known for being calm. Besides, Hayley didn’t need to get herself involved with this. Not while she was pregnant. She needed to focus on keeping herself and her baby safe. 

“We need you to do a spell for us,” Riah said, crossing her arms.

Sophie looked at the three Originals incredulously. She let out a little laugh of disbelief. None of the vampires even cracked a smile. They were deathly serious about this. They needed to find Elijah and the quickest way to do that was with a locator spell. It was faster to do this than it was to try and find some witch in a different state. Sophie leaned forward in her chair, locking eyes with Klaus.

"Are you out of your mind? No way.” Sophie shook her head.

“It's very simple-- We need you to perform a teeny, tiny locator spell to help us find our brother.”

“Witches who practice magic in this town get caught, and then they get killed.”

“Yes, about that. It seems you left out a crucial detail when we made our deal--Marcel's secret weapon, the way he knows when a witch is using magic…” Klaus began. He turned to Rebekah, letting her finish the description.

“Girl about yea high, cute as a button, anger issues?”

Sophie’s face was overcome with shock. She didn’t realise that they knew. It had never even occurred to her that they might figure it out. That showed how much she was really hiding. There was more. Azariah couldn’t help but wonder just what Sophie Deveraux was hiding. She narrowed her eyes.

“Davina? Where have you seen her?”

“I don't know. The little brat erased my memory right after she threw me out a window with her bloody mind.”

“Let me cut to the chase. Davina has Elijah. You witches, I assume, want to get Davina away from Marcel. We don't know where she is. Ergo, we need magic.”

Sophie shook her head again. “Davina would sense it.”

“Unless, of course, another witch, say, a traitor to the cause - Katie for example- was to perform much more powerful magic at the same time. That would create a smokescreen, concealing your very small spell from Davina.”

“Katie doesn't deserve to die.”

Klaus slammed his hands on his desk angrily. Sophie jumped. She had the good sense to be a little bit afraid of him. He stood up, staring her down. She swallowed loudly.

“Sophie Deveraux! You're in no position to be so principled. You can't win a war without a few strategic losses, no matter how regrettable they may be. How many times have the vampires been one step ahead, known something they shouldn't? Your sister, executed in the public square for practicing magic, who knew she'd be caught. Did she even attempt to flee?”

“She was caught hiding in a cargo hold of a freighter before it set sail down the Mississippi.” Sophie looked at the ground as she spoke. Her voice was just barely above a whisper.

“And who, pray tell, of Marcel's valued inner circle, manages his business at the docks?”

“Katie's boyfriend, Thierry.”

“And there you have it, darling girl,” Riah said. She sat on the arm of the chair Sophie was in, gently brushing her hair away from her face. “Katie is the real reason your sister was killed, isn’t she. And, I’m assuming, the reason you almost lost your leverage in all of this.” Azariah looked briefly at the door. “How many more witches will die because of little old Katie and her foolish love, hm? How much are you willing to lose to her, Sophie Deveraux?”

****

* * *

****

Klaus was happy to hear about the successful rousting. Well, successful for their plans. The vampire they’d taken hostage, Max, had been drained of vervain thanks to the efforts of Joshua. Riah compelled him to go rousting and attack Katie. He was to attack until Thierry killed him, which, if what Marcel said about him was true, wouldn’t take much. Elijah wouldn’t like this plan when she told him about it, but it was what had to be done. She truly believed that. She had to, otherwise she’d lose her nerve.

As for Rebekah, she’d brought it on herself to invite a little distraction for Marcel. Cami, the bartender that Klaus had been talking about. Apparently, the two of them had become quite close. They were hoping that her presence there would make him not question theirs. Or their absence, when it came to it. Azariah would go to Sophie with Rebekah once Marcel received news of the tragedy. This all had to go off without a hitch. She hoped that it would. 

She adjusted her mask a little more. It covered her face well. She knew that no one in New Orleans knew who she was, but she liked having the extra security that a masquerade could offer. She’d chosen to be a devil amongst the angels tonight. She took a deep breath. Everything was going to work out. Between the three of them, they had thought of every single thing that could go wrong. Riah looked in the mirror. Klaus was going to kill Katie. She knew it without even having to ask him. There was a reason he wasn’t going to be there while Sophie was performing the spell but he insisted that Riah and Rebekah go. She knew it. He wanted to have the chance to kill Katie himself and earn Marcel’s trust. It wasn’t a bad plan. She just wished that it wasn’t the way that this had to go.

‘Us or them’. That was the true promise of the Mikaelson family. Most of the time, they acted with very little regard for those around them. As long as they got what they really wanted. That was the important part. It had always been the important part. She couldn’t deny that she had been the same way. She still was the same way. For Rebekah and Elijah, she’d gladly risk it all. For Klaus… well, there was a reason she was trying to convince Elijah to leave his brother’s side. She couldn’t forgive Klaus for what happened with Finn. He’d let his older brother die for him without a second thought. He’d do the same thing to Elijah, Riah was sure of it. 

She walked up to the compound. It had been decked out for this party. Acrobats. Dancers. Exotic animals. Not to mention the guest list. Anyone who was important in this city was in attendance. Azariah couldn’t help but be impressed. Marcel had worked hard to make a name for himself here. He’d become a fixture almost. And this party was just his way of showing that. She took a deep breath. More than likely she wasn’t going to meet Marcel tonight. That was her hope. She didn’t want to try and come up with a fake name and reason that she was at the party.

After about fifteen minutes or so, Rebekah and Klaus showed up arm in arm. Both of them were wearing black, dressed for the occasion. They both crossed the courtyard to greet Cami, the young blonde Marcel was entranced with. They spoke for a while until Rebekah dragged Cami off to get a drink. Azariah walked over to Klaus.

“Are you ready for tonight?” he asked.

“Of course I am.” She watched Marcel pull Cami away from Rebekah. “Everything’s going to plan?”

“Dance with me, Riah.”

He held out his hand with a devilish grin. Azariah sighed and took it. He led her to the dance floor. They stayed on one edge while Cami and Marcel were on the other. Klaus kept one eye on them, waiting for the news to break. He gave Riah a quick twirl and pulled her to his chest.

“When are you going to forgive me?” he asked. “We were close, once, you and I.”

“Sometime after Elijah is safe and sound at home and not a moment sooner. And we were close _once_ , Niklaus, because _you_ didn’t always have the daggers. You started threatening me, remember?” she said.

“Riah-”

“Look. Diego’s arrived.”

She turned his attention back to Marcel. Marcel stepped away from Cami as his man whispered in his ear. Riah watched his expression drop and his eyes wander to Thierry, their Romeo in question. He looked genuinely guilty. Then everything had gone to plan. Marcel excused himself from his guest and marched over to Thierry. Azariah broke away from Klaus and started to leave the party. Rebekah would be close behind her. They needed to get to the cemetery as quickly as possible. She glanced behind her shoulder and walked a little quicker. She wasn’t paying attention and ran into someone. 

She caught herself before she could fall to the ground and immediately started apologising. She looked up and saw him. Erik. It had to be. She was in shock. This was the last place she had been expecting to see him. He apologised to her with a grin, patting her shoulder and walking right into the compound like he owned the place. Before Riah could process what just happened, Rebekah was next to her.

“Who was that? Doesn’t matter. We need to go. Quickly now.” Rebekah grabbed Azariah’s arm and started dragging her away.

Azariah shook her head and refocused. She would worry about Erik later. For now she had to make sure that they didn’t screw this up. They made it to the cemetery. Sophie was waiting for them. Everything that she needed for the locator spell was already in the tomb. She sighed as the Original vampires showed up. No doubt she was still reluctant to do any of this. It was her fault for drawing Klaus and Elijah back to New Orleans in the first place. Katie was unfortunate collateral damage.

Sophie looked anxious as she set up the map and sand. She looked between Riah and Rebekah.

“You’re doing the right thing,” Riah said.

“I’m doing what I have to.”

Without another word, Sophie went straight into her spell. She began her incantation. Riah watched the sand move across the map in a thin line, going from where they were in the cemetery towards Elijah. She took a breath. She was so close. They were going to find him. Sophie furrowed her brows and opened her eyes.

“Something’s wrong. Katie’s magic stopped.” Sophie closed her eyes again. “I can keep going.”

“You can’t. She’ll sense it,” Rebekah said.

“No. I can find Davina. I just need another moment.”

Azariah grabbed the map before Sophie could chant again. She dumped the sand onto the ground. Sophie stood up in protest. Rebekah shook her head.

“You may be willing to die to get your witch back, but Hayley and the baby will die with you. Elijah will never forgive us, and rescuing him will be for nothing. It's over. We failed.”

Azariah took a breath. Klaus was supposed to wait. He was supposed to wait until they completed the spell. He killed Katie too soon. She kicked the wall in frustration and ran a hand through her hair. She shook her head. She didn’t say anything else as she moved out of the tomb. She walked back home. They had been so close. She had almost gotten him back after all this time. Riah should have stayed at the party and stopped Klaus. He didn’t really care about getting Elijah back. Not as much as he cared about getting what he wanted. He just wanted this city to be his again.

Rebekah followed her. She sighed in exasperation. 

“There goes our one chance! I thought that Katie girl was a strong witch,” Rebekah said.

“Please. You know who did this, Rebekah,” Azariah scoffed.

“What do you mean?”

“Think about it. What kind of vampire is strong enough to withstand a superpowered witch attack? Certainly not Marcel Gerard.”

“You can’t possibly mean-”

“Ask him yourself, Rebekah. You know I’m right.”

Rebekah stopped walking next to Azariah as it truly hit her. Riah kept moving forward. She needed to find some way to get Erik out of this city. She knew that he’d be drinking vervain, just like the rest of Marcel’s guys. She really didn’t want to torture and compel him to leave, but she was certain that he would only sound the alarm if she revealed herself to him. She didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t tell Klaus that she had a son. That would only put his life in even more danger. He’d use Erik as a pawn, just like he did with the rest of his family. She couldn’t tell anyone that he was her son. Even if he wanted nothing to do with her, Erik was still Riah’s weakness. He was always going to be her weakness.

She made her way back to the house. Now she had two things to worry about. She had to get Elijah back and she needed to keep her son safe. This was just going to get more complicated the longer that Klaus put off getting his brother back. She moved past the piano and started upstairs. She cast one last glance down at the front entrance as Rebekah came home. She was still distraught that this night had failed. Riah couldn’t blame her. She headed to her room, closing the door behind her. She leaned against it and looked out at the night sky. She dropped her mask to the floor, walking to the window. Without a doubt she had to keep Erik out of this war. She had to get Elijah back. And she had to go against Klaus to do it. He wouldn’t do whatever it took to help his family. He would only do whatever he could while making sure his plans of world domination weren’t destroyed entirely.

She’d be damned if she let him hurt anyone else she cared about.


	40. Just to Burn: Chapter 3

Azariah sat next to Rebekah, helping her map out an area of where Elijah could be. They had a general area thanks to Sophie’s spell, but it wasn’t enough. They still didn’t know what kind of building he was in, which street that building might be on, and all the other important little details that they needed to actually find him. Marcel had told Klaus he would give Elijah back, but seeing as that had yet to happen, Riah was losing faith that the young vampire actually would. Davina was keeping Elijah because she was trying to figure out how to kill an Original. That much had become fairly obvious. She pushed away from the desk in frustration. 

Hayley was sitting in the next room with Agnes, the elder from the impotent coven of witches. She had been rather insistent about meeting with Hayley. Hayley seemed disinterested. Riah couldn’t blame her. Hayley let out a heavy sigh and gave an obviously false smile to the witch.

“I told you Agnes, I feel great!” Hayley insisted.

“You are overdue for a checkup,” Agnes said,

“What am I gonna do? Pop into the Quarter for a quick ultrasound? A pregnant werewolf escorted by a witch? Nothing to see here!”

Rebekah scoffed. The one thing she had always wanted more than anything was a family of her own. She used to dream of it. Riah could remember it well. How willing Rebekah had been to drop everything when Azariah needed help with Erik as a baby. It was sad that Rebekah couldn’t remember that herself. Riah looked at the ground for a moment before moving to sit next to Hayley. She grabbed the book from Hayley’s hands, flipping through a few pages before dropping it on the couch next to her.

“A lot of women would kill to have a child,” Rebekah said, not really trying to hide her jealousy. “ It strikes me as odd that you're not taking better care of yours.”

“I know a doctor out in the Bayou, off the beaten path. Now, I took the liberty of making an appointment for you. Tonight, after-hours, just us. Vampires will never get word of it.”

Azariah narrowed her eyes. She didn’t like the sound of Hayley going anywhere with the witches. The last time that had happened, they had decided to use her as leverage against the Original family. Hayley looked at Azariah. Riah couldn’t deny that it would be a good idea to get some kind of a checkup. This child was a miracle baby. There were all manner of things that could be happening. After a moment, Hayley rolled her eyes.

“Okay, fine. Bayou-baby-doctor it is,” she sighed.

Agnes smiled. She and Hayley stood up and started to leave the room. Azariah stood and grabbed Agnes’s arm. The witch looked scared for the briefest moment. Riah narrowed her eyes again and took a deep breath.

“Take good care of our girl, Agnes. I’d hate to see something happen to your little coven because of a mishap in the bayou.”

Agnes nodded at Riah’s thinly veiled threat. Hayley gave Azariah a look and continued out the door. Riah didn’t trust the witches. She didn’t trust any witches. She hadn’t had a lot of good experiences with them as of late. The last thing she really wanted was for Hayley to be alone with a witch for several hours without any of the family there to keep her safe. Still, the look Hayley gave Riah told her that the werewolf could take care of herself. Riah knew that was true, but that didn’t make it any easier. Keeping Hayley safe was Riah’s way of making sure that Elijah didn’t inadvertently break his word because of his brother. Agnes helped Hayley into her car.

Riah heard Klaus laugh in Rebekah’s general direction. She closed the front door and walked over to the two of them. Rebekah didn’t look away from her computer screen, even as Klaus teased her.

“Please, sister, tell me you're not still at it with the internet search. How does one begin, anyway? Just type in ‘anonymous attic?’” He asked, pouring himself a glass of scotch.

“Someone has to find Elijah, even if I have to search every bloody attic in New Orleans,” Rebekah said.

“Like looking for a needle in a rather large pile of needles.”

“I remember details about the attic Marcel took me to. There were shutters on the windows behind Elijah's coffin.”

“Well, that should narrow it down immensely. Myself, I prefer actual strategy as opposed to mind-numbing labor. Marcel's delay in returning our brother makes me suspect he's no longer in charge of the situation. If Davina's loyalty to Marcel is strained, perhaps the young witch will be open to discussing a new alliance.”

Azariah scoffed. “Ah, and as usually, Niklaus, you show your true colours. Tell me, how is it that securing the _tenuous_ loyalty of a teenage witch is more important that rescuing your older brother who has, mind you, always put _your_ happiness above his own?”

“I prefer to think of it as killing two birds with one stone. Rob Marcel of his secret weapon, bring my brother home.”

Klaus took a sip of his drink. Riah crossed her arms. Of course he would see it that way. She wasn’t shocked. She was unimpressed and annoyed with his lack of interest in the pain his brother might be forced to endure because of his selfish actions. 

She couldn’t deny that she had some selfish things planned for today herself. There was some sort of music festival happening in the Quarter. Riah was going in hopes that she might see Erik and convince him to leave. At the very least, get him to listen to her. She was so relieved that he was still alive. When she’d seen him as she was leaving the party, she had been shocked. She was also certain that he hadn’t recognised who she was. Their encounters thus far had been brief and she’d been wearing a mask. Now, she was planning on going to him herself. No mask, no trying to hide who she was. Hopefully, that would be enough for him to trust her long enough that they could get a real conversation in. She wanted him to know the truth about what had happened all those years ago.

Rebekah closed the laptop in frustration and grabbed her coat. Klaus looked at her curiously but said nothing, just taking another sip of his scotch. Azariah headed upstairs. She didn’t want to spend any more time with Niklaus than she had to. The festival was starting in a few hours. Marcel would probably have men patrolling the whole thing just in case. There would be a few daywalkers at first and then more as the sun went down. Erik had a daylight ring himself. If she was lucky, she’d find him sooner rather than later and somehow manage to get him alone. She was risking a lot of people finding out who she was for this. She hoped that it would be worth it.

She waited an hour or so before leaving the house. Klaus asked where she was going. She gave a vague answer and went on her way. She drove into the city and parked. It was truly crazy out in the streets. There were bands everywhere. People were already drunk, even as the sun still hung high in the sky. She passed by her fair share of singing idiots and nearly had three different drinks spilled on her. It was almost impossible to move around. 

Riah sighed heavily. She wasn’t going to make any progress from the streets. She moved to one of the balconies, leaning on the metal bars as she looked down. She scoured the street for any sign of Erik. There were more than a few vampires running around. Just like she had predicted. Klaus mentioned that Davina was going to be here. Riah had a description of the girl. She knew who she’d be looking for because, apparently, Cami was going to be by her side. Riah just had to avoid those two on her search and things would be fine. 

She caught a glimpse of Erik turning a corner. Without a second thought, she went after him. There was no sign of Davina anywhere. This was where Marcel wanted Erik tobe. For some reason, Erik was working for or with Marcel. Riah didn’t understand why. She didn’t need to. She just needed to get him out of the city before Klaus went on one of his famous rampages that got people killed. She rounded the corner and saw Erik at the end of the alleyway, struggling to light a cigarette. Riah took a deep breath.

“Need help?” she asked.

Erik nearly jumped out of his skin. The cigarette fell to the ground. He locked eyes with Azariah. She put her hands on her hips.

“Those things’ll kill you,” she joked.

“What the hell do _you_ want?” He asked. “Why are you even here?”

She shrugged. “It would seem that all the Originals are in town these days. I thought I’d join them.”

“Good for you. I thought I told you to leave me alone.”

“You did. I decided to ignore it. You need to leave town.”

“And why is that?”

“Because death follows Klaus around like a dark shadow. I don’t want you to get caught up in it, Erik.”

“Wonderful,” Erik scoffed. “You’re deciding to be a mother. You’re about a thousand years too late, but thanks.”

He started to walk away. She grabbed his arm as he passed. She didn’t know how she was going to convince him to leave. She couldn’t tell him what Klaus was planning. She knew that would just get them all into more trouble than it was worth. She needed to be careful about this but… she didn’t know what to say. He was right. She hadn’t been a mother. She wasn’t sure that she deserved the right to it now. Erik was a stranger to her but he was still her blood. Her family. Whether he liked it or not.

“Your father is dead, Erik.”

His face didn’t give anything away, but she could feel his arm stiffen in her grip. She was a little surprised that he didn’t already know that. He didn’t know that Finn was dead. Riah loosened her grip. Erik didn’t try to move away from her. He just stayed.

“Finn… he was protecting me. He died in my arms. I’ve lost enough family in my life, Erik. I know you don’t think of me as family, but you are my son still. I… _we_ lost you when you were still just a child. I still don’t know what happened to you. I want you to be safe, Erik. I want to try and help you now because I never got the chance to be the parent you deserved. I can’t change the past. But I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep you safe. You have my word.”

“Azariah,” Erik said softly, “I won’t tell Marcel you’re here. But I’m not leaving.”

She nodded. “Avoid Klaus at all costs. He doesn’t care who he hurts to get what he wants. He can’t know who you are. Which might be difficult. You… you look just like your father. Be careful. Please.”

He nodded and walked away, lighting a cigarette as he went. It didn’t lift the weight from her chest, but she felt that this was a good step in the right direction. Azariah watched him leave. She made a promise, not only to herself but to Finn, too, that she wouldn’t let anything happen to Erik. She would keep him safe. Erik disappeared into the crowd. Azariah leaned against the nearby wall, letting her head fall into her hands. He wasn’t making this easy on her. At least this time he’d heard her out. That was some kind of progress. Maybe the most that she could hope for.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She looked. Rebekah texted her. She’d found Elijah. More than that, he was awake. He was alive. Azariah let out a sigh of relief. He had to be home, then. That was one problem resolved. She looked around the music festival. Her business was done here. She wasn’t going to convince Erik to leave New Orleans in one conversation. That had been wishful thinking, of course. Now that Elijah was finally going to be back with her, she’d be able to focus all of her attention on getting Erik out of town. She pushed off of the wall. She could go home now in good spirits.

****

* * *

****

No one was home when Riah got there. Rebekah hadn’t texted her in too long. There was no sign that anyone had been there since the afternoon. Hayley wasn’t back from her appointment. Elijah wasn’t home. Rebekah wasn’t texting Riah back. The last time that had happened she’d found out that Elijah was daggered and subsequently given to some very, very bad people. To say she was worried was an understatement. She called Rebekah. No answer. Riah started to pace. She had no idea where anyone was. Not even Klaus. She thought about calling him. No, even if he did something, he wouldn’t tell her anything. It would be useless to try and get anything out of him.

She wondered if she’d be able to get anything from Marcel. He and Rebekah still had some kind of weird relationship left over from a century ago. There was always a chance that he knew what had happened to her or where she had been. Riah decided against that. She needed to keep her status as an Original vampire somewhat a secret. She called Rebekah one more time. She really hoped that nothing bad happened to her.

After a few rings, Rebekah answered.

“Azariah! Hayley’s missing!” she said.

“What? Where are you? Where have you _been?”_

“Just come to me. I’m in the bayou. There’s blood and bodies everywhere. No pregnant werewolf.”

“Wonderful. Keep looking, Bekah, I’m on my way.”

Azariah ran to her car. Rebekah sent her a text with an address. Riah drove there as quickly as she could. She knew that she shouldn’t have let Hayley go with Agnes alone and now Rebekah had gotten herself into trouble, too. Azariah hit the steering wheel in frustration. She wouldn’t forgive herself if something happened to Hayley or the child. She drove as far as she could into the bayou. She walked the rest of the way, following Rebekah’s footprints until she found the clearing with all the bodies.

It was a massacre. Blood really was everywhere. The bodies had been torn apart completely. Riah had only seen things like this when werewolves were involved. She looked at the sky. The moon wasn’t full. There was no way that it could be werewolves. Then how had this happened? There weren’t any hybrids left besides Klaus and that kid from Mystic Falls. Riah stepped over one of the bodies. She slowly made her way to the office that Rebekah had told her about. The doctor was unconscious with a needle next to her. It was empty. Riah kneeled down next to her. Hayley must’ve tried to get away.

“Rebekah?!” She called. “Where are you?”

“Riah!” Rebekah came inside the doctor’s office.

She ran and hugged Azariah. She had blood on her jacket and a hole in her shirt. Right where her heart was. Azariah looked over her, making sure that she was okay.

“Bekah. What happened? Where’s Hayley?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I would like to know.”

Klaus walked towards them with his arms crossed. He looked frustrated. Angry. Positively murderous, if you knew him. Rebekah scoffed. Riah looked over him. He had been somewhere more important than this? There was no way that Riah should have gotten here before him if he was in the city. And yet, that was exactly what happened.

“Wow! You abandoned your quest for power to help out your family! Having an off day?” Rebekah asked sarcastically.

Klaus was surprisingly calm as he regarded his little sister. “Who took her, Rebekah?”

“I don't know.”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to keep that calm. Riah stood a little in front of Rebekah. He didn’t have the daggers but he had werewolf fangs coated in venom. He’d already shown that he was willing and able to bite them if he didn’t like something they said. Riah wasn’t going to let him do that to Rebekah.

“What do you mean, you don't know? And who killed her attackers?”

“I don't know!” she threw her hands up in the air. “I had an arrow in my heart. If it wasn't Hayley who killed them, then–”

Wolves howled in the distance. All three of them looked towards the sounds. Klaus raised his eyebrows. Riah started walking towards the sounds. She looked back at the siblings, both of them angry with the other for way more reasons than just this. Riah didn’t have the patience to work through their familial issues while Hayley was out there somewhere. She pushed past Klaus and opened the front door. Hayley was stumbling up the stairs. Her clothes were tattered and dirty. She stumbled right into Azariah’s arms. She was clearly dazed and exhausted. Azariah led her to the small bench in front and sat her down. She put her hand over Hayley’s stomach and listened. It was still there, under Hayley’s frantic heartbeat. The baby was still alive.

“Hayley! What happened? Tell me what happened,” Klaus demanded.

“I can't remember,” she said groggily, furrowing her eyebrows as she tried to remember.

Klaus checked over her, looking at her shoulder where her shirt was torn. There weren’t any marks on her. No cuts, no bruises, nothing. She was fine. Riah let out a breath of relief. She wouldn’t have been able to look at herself in the mirror if Hayley had been seriously hurt. She wouldn’t have been able to face Elijah.

“You've completely healed. There's not a scratch on you,” Klaus said.

“One of the perks of being a werewolf, remember?”

“No, not that fast.”

Azariah put an arm around Hayley and glared at Klaus. “Leave her alone.”

Rebekah chuckled after a moment of silence. “It's the baby. The vampire blood-- Klaus' vampire blood-- in your system. It can heal any wound.” They all looked at Hayley’s stomach. Her unborn child. “Your own child healed you.”

Hayley stared at her stomach. Klaus smiled at the thought. His child was protecting its mother. It was a sweet thought. More importantly, it meant that Hayley was safe and sound. She was going to stay safe, even if people tried to hurt her because she had vampire blood constantly running in her veins. Riah looked at Klaus. He seemed… proud, almost. As if he were the one that kept Hayley safe, the one that healed her wounds as if she’d drank from his wrist.

“How did you escape? You were outnumbered, unarmed? Those men were ripped to shreds!”

“I think it was the wolf. I think it's trying to protect me.”

Klaus scoffed angrily. He paced around the porch before pointing at Hayley. “The witches were supposed to protect you! When I get my hands on Sophie Deveraux-”

“It wasn't Sophie. It was Agnes.”

“Fine! Agnes, Sophie, it's all the same to me! I'll slaughter the lot of them!”

“Not if Elijah gets there first,” Rebekah said.

Azariah and Hayley both perked up at the mention of Elijah. Rebekah had told Riah that she’d found him. In the chaos of looking for Hayley, she hadn't thought about the fact that Elijah wasn’t with her. Surely if he was awake, he would have been here to help Hayley. So why wasn’t he there? Riah didn’t like that he hadn’t made an appearance if he was truly awake. 

“Where is he?” Riah asked, standing up. 

“He's been in touch, and he has a plan. All he asks is that we take care of you, Hayley.”

Hayley smiled. “Hey, so... can we go home now? I'd really like to sleep for a few days…”

She stood up. Klaus smiled and nodded. They had all had a rough night. She took a step forward. Her knees buckled and she stumbled again. Riah caught her before she hit the ground. Without saying anything, she scooped Hayley up in a bridal-carry. Hayley gave her a look. Riah smiled and shrugged. Klaus gave them both a long and grumbled something under his breath.

“What? I’m just doing what Elijah asked.”

Hayley smiled and shook her head as Azariah carried her to the car by the office. She’d send someone to get her own vehicle in the morning. Riah set Hayley in the back seat. The four of them were silent as Klaus drove them back to the plantation. When they finally got home, Azariah was the only one of the vampires that actually _stayed_ with Hayley. Klaus ran off to deal with some aftermath of his meddling and Riah was sure that Rebekah was off talking to Marcel. She feigned indifference, but she’d never been a great liar. Rebekah still loved Marcel and she was taking any chance she had to talk to him.

Despite Hayley’s protests that she could walk on her own, Azariah helped her to her room. Hayley was grateful to lay in her bed. Riah went down and brewed a cup of decaf tea for her to help calm her nerves. She set the cup next to the nightstand. Hayley looked at the cup. She didn’t have a lot to say. That made sense. No doubt she was still in shock after what Agnes had pulled. Riah was going to find that witch and show her her own heart. Hayley was a part of this family. Riah knew that beyond a shadow of a doubt. She also knew that people who hurt her family weren’t long for this world. One or all of them would come down to attack their enemies. That was how it had always been.

“You’re very resilient, Hayley,” Riah complimented.

“Yeah, well, growing up alone I had to be,” Hayley sighed. She looked at her stomach again. “How am I supposed to do this? How am I supposed to be a _mother?”_

“Everyone has that fear,” Riah said. “I did.”

“You? You were pregnant?”

“Is it really so strange to think I might be a mother?”

Azariah chuckled. Hayley looked away sheepishly. She took a sip of her tea. Riah let out a soft sigh. She hadn’t really said it to anyone outside of the family before. She didn’t have people to talk to that she hadn’t known for most of her life. She looked at Hayley. She promised to protect this girl. To do that, she was going to need Hayley’s trust. Riah took a deep breath before she spoke.

“You already know that I was married to Elijah’s older brother, Finn. We… well, we were expected to have children and we did. One. A son. He was born a few years before we were turned into vampires. Of course, because of something my mother in law did or planned, he disappeared and she took away any memory or mention of him from the entire village. I didn’t know that he even existed until a few months ago. My own mother died when I was a child. My father’s death followed a few years later and that’s why Mikael and Esther took me in. Esther forced me to marry the brother of the man I loved, took away my son, and turned me into a vampire. As long as you’re better than her, you’ll be an amazing mom. Plus, you’ll never be alone. Elijah and I will always be there to help you with this.”

“You didn’t have to tell me that,” Hayley said.

Azariah shrugged. “I like you, Hayley. I want you to trust me. Perhaps learning more about my past will let you get there.”

Hayley nodded. She took another sip of tea. “Thanks for the tea.”

“Any time.”

Riah stood and left the room. She went to her own bedroom. Elijah was awake and doing something. Klaus had shown an iota of affection for his child. Even Rebekah was starting to care. Riah could see it in her eyes. Maybe Elijah’s hopes weren’t as foolish as Riah had initially thought. Everytime that Hayley and that child came to any sort of harm, Klaus was aggressive to a murderous extent. He wanted this child to be born. Fatherhood changed people. Riah had seen it firsthand with Finn. She’d also seen what could happen when the child was lost. She shuddered to think about what would happen to Klaus if this child died. Azariah had to admit that she, too, was attached to the idea of a baby Mikaelson running around the place. When Rebekah had told her that Hayley was missing, all other thoughts were gone from her head. That wasn’t really like her at all.

Riah fell back against her bed and stared at the ceiling. She reached up for nothing in particular, looking at her hand against the light. She had never thought that she’d have hope for Klaus’s redemption. Elijah was always so certain that his brother could be saved. So much so that it was often to his detriment. Azariah could never understand it. She’d lost hope of it centuries ago. Seeing the way that he smiled when he learned what his child, his _daughter_ , was already doing for her mother… Azariah couldn't deny that she wanted Klaus to become his old self. Not entirely, of course. That would never be possible. Just a remnant of who he was. The sweet boy that carved chess pieces for his siblings, knowing that he would get a beating for it. Just to see the smile when he gave it to them. She rolled over to her side, looking out the window at the slowly rising moon.

Elijah was coming home soon. Riah kept that thought in her head. She’d had a real conversation with her son for the first time… _ever_. Against all odds, things were looking up for her family. She was going to do whatever she needed to do to make sure that it stayed that way.


	41. **Just to Burn: Chapter 4**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mean. You knew this was gonna happen eventually.

Riah counted under her breath. She reached zero just as Klaus brought Sophie into the house, throwing her back against one of the couches. Riah gave a small applause. Rebekah rolled her eyes at Azariah’s praise. It wasn’t like Klaus had done anything particularly impressive. She crossed her arms, moving in front of the desk and leaned back. Klaus looked over Sophie. He had this way of making himself seem larger than he actually was. For some, it was a truly terrifying experience. Sophie’s eyes were wide in fear as she looked around the room.

“We had a deal!” Klaus roared. “You protect my unborn child. I dismantle Marcel’s army. And whilst I’ve been busy fulfilling my side of the bargain, you allowed Hayley to be attacked and almost killed by a gaggle of lunatic witches.”

“I had _nothing_ to do with it, I swear. Hayley and I are linked, remember? She dies, I die,” Sophie spoke frantically.

“Oh, we didn’t forget that small detail. However,” Azariah sat down next to Sophie, putting her arm over the witch’s shoulders, “that doesn’t mean that you are completely ignorant, either. After all, you _are_ a member of their community. Who were they?”

Sophie shied away from Riah. Even though she _knew_ that Azariah couldn’t hurt her, she was scared. She knew that if her link was ever broken, there would be nothing that she could do to stop her death. Either an Original would kill her, or they’d attack and her attempts to save herself with magic would lead to her execution by Marcel and his men. That was why she was scared. Klaus sat down across from them. Riah could smell the fear coming off of their little witch. Funny. She was all confidence and bluster until she was faced with all three Original vampires walking in the Quarter.

“They’re a faction of extremists. _Sabine_ stupidly told them about some vision she had about the baby,” she sighed.

Klaus narrowed his eyes. “What kind of vision?”

“She has them all the time. They’re _totally_ open to interpretation. I’m guessing she’s wrong on this one.”

“Well, how, may I ask, was this particular vision interpreted?”

“...pretty much that your baby would bring death to all witches.”

“Ah, well, I grow fonder of this child by the second.”

Azariah shot Klaus a look. She pushed off of the couch and crossed her arms. She didn’t know how true Sabine’s vision was. She had her doubts. Of course, there was no denying that this child would be dangerous, with or without some witch prophecy tacked on to it all. There would be those that would want to use her as a weapon. A weapon against the Originals or one that was unstoppable. Riah’s eyes wandered over to Klaus. No. Klaus was many things, a monster among them, but even he had his limits. He hated being compared to his father more than anything else in the world. He had to know that if he used his daughter as a pawn in his war, he’d be worse than Mikael. More than that, there were four people that would never let him go so far as to hurt her like that. This child of his was always going to have the potential of being dangerous. That didn’t mean that she would be.

The fact that those witches would act so aggressively towards something so inconclusive… it showed just how little they cared about those facts. Azariah shook her head. Every side of this war truly believed that they were on the right side. She was on the side of Hayley’s child living to see her first birthday. This war belonged to her family, unfortunately. Klaus started it. He dragged his siblings into it. Elijah pulled Riah into it. Now, she was going to have to see it through to make sure that Hayley’s daughter might know a moment’s peace. Sophie and her gaggle of radical witches were making that increasingly difficult. She was going to have to start keeping a closer eye on Hayley to make sure that she didn’t get hurt.

“Sophie, listen,” Rebekah crossed her arms, “I promised Elijah I would protect the Mikaelson Miracle Baby whilst he tries to win your witch Davina’s loyalty. Why don’t you tell me just how extreme this faction is?”

“Elijah’s talking to Davina?” Sophie asked. Her shock and anxiety were present in her voice.

“As we speak, I imagine.”

Sophie slid down into the cushions with a heavy sigh. “I’m sure she’ll have plenty to say about that crowd.”

“Do tell.”

Klaus crossed his arms and leaned back against the desk. All of them were listening as Sophie, somewhat reluctant to talk, told the story of how Davina had come to be as powerful as she was. Her family had been devoted to the craft. Sophie, not so much. She was more of a party girl. When she eventually came back to the Quarter, her sister told her that the coven was planning on moving forward with the Harvest.

“Ah,” Azariah smirked, shaking her head, “so Davina is your Harvest Girl, then.”

“You know about the Harvest?” Sophie raised an eyebrow.

“A symbolic ritual to restore power, yes?”

“Y-yeah. Something like that.”

Riah had heard of similar things throughout the years. All witches practised a type of spiritual magic that was attached somehow to their ancestors. They could channel those ancestors to be stronger but they had a certain level of power for themselves. Those that practised almost exclusively ancestral magic, like the witches of the Quarter, relied on the magic from past witches consecrated on their land to keep their magic powerful. The ancestors liked to know that the witches still living didn’t take their magic for granted, so every few centuries or so, they wanted a show of faith. From Riah’s understanding, most covens took a little bit of blood from their elders, the most powerful witches in the coven, along with items of sentimental value. That still didn’t explain Davina. If she’d been born with that much power, then maybe. BUt she lacked focus. Control. The things that made witches truly powerful.

Sophie was clearly leaving something out of her story. There was a reason that she looked so distraught everytime Davina’s name came up. She continued her story. The four girls were chosen and prepared for months. Everyone was told that it was an honour to be chosen. Azariah was shocked to hear that it was all young girls. Teenagers. Maybe she shouldn't have been surprised. Witches didn’t always disclose the whole truth, especially not for internal matters such as the Harvest. Riah was disgusted that they were using kids. It was deplorable. Children had no idea what was being asked of them. They didn’t know any better.

“I always thought it was a _myth,”_ Sophie said quietly.

“Was it?” Rebekah asked.

Before Sophie could respond, Klaus’s phone started to buzz. She looked away from them in guilt as Klaus walked away. Azariah narrowed her eyes and started pacing. Something extreme must have happened for Sophie to go from shunning her heritage to luring the Original family into the city and linking herself to a werewolf. She was avoiding getting to the point.

Klaus mentioned the witches that were dead in the woods. Sophie perked up. Riah stopped pacing and looked at her. Ah. She actually cared despite the fact that they had almost killed Hayley, and consequently her. After another moment of lying to the man he claimed was his friend, Klaus hung up. Sophie leaned forward on the couch with a certain urgency to her voice. Hayley slowly came into the room as voices were raised.

“You can’t go out there now,” she said, “I need to gather the witches’ remains and consecrate them. If I don’t get them by sundown, we’ll lose the link to their magic,”

“Those witches tried to kill Hayley. I’d prefer for Marcel’s informant not to find anything that would lead him back to us, to her or to… you know…” he gestured loosely at Hayley’s stomach, _”that.”_

“You’re all class,” Hayley said sarcastically.

“You,” Klaus turned to Sophie, “stay. And save the rest of your story until I get back.”

****

“Why are we going after the witch?” Rebekah complained.

“Because she took off in a hurry and then Hayley wasn’t too far behind. In order to keep Hayley safe, we have to keep the witch safe,” Riah explained. “Come on. It’s not much farther to the mausoleum. That’s where they’ll be.”

Sophie, like Azariah had been expecting, had no interest in waiting for Klaus to come back to the house. She’d run out when she thought no one was looking. In all fairness, Hayley was the only one watching Sophie but Rebekah and Riah were watching Hayley. The poor witch had never had a chance of sneaking out undetected in the first place. Azariah stepped over a broken stone as she entered the mausoleum.

“-some guardian-angel-wolf saved my life. So, I'm coming with you,” Hayley’s voice came from the entrance.

Azariah crossed her arms. “Wonderful. Mind if we join the party?”

Sophie and Hayley both sighed in frustration. Rebekah scoffed.

“Two can play the follow-game, you know! You heard Klaus, he and Marcel are headed right where you're going.”

“So distract them. Because unless you wanna lock a hormonal, pregnant werewolf in a tomb, I'm coming with you. And wouldn't Elijah be mad if he hears that the baby and I died of asphyxiation?”

“The tomb doesn’t sound like such a bad idea, honestly,” Riah said.

Hayley gave her a look. Azariah held up her hands defensively. She wasn’t actually going to lock Hayley in a tomb. It was just a thought. A good thought. That would eliminate a lot of problems caused by Hayley and Sophie. Sophie sighed in resignation. She was going to have some company on this little suicide mission of hers.

Azariah drove them to the doctor’s office. That was the closest they could get a car to the witches’ bodies. Hayley had her supplies stuffed into a backpack. Rebekah was still complaining, mostly about the shoes that she was wearing now as they traipsed through the woods. She called Klaus a while later to ask him to stall Marcel for them. Sophie was determined to get these bodies and they needed to make sure that no travelling vampires found something they weren’t supposed to. It would be bad if Sophie got hurt. Hayley would suffer the same thing. That was the only reason any of them cared about Sophie.

“Well, order up a few rounds of moonshine and steer clear of the dead witches for a few. The witch is on a burial mission, your baby mama is on a spirit quest, and I'm keeping Elijah's promise to keep her safe. So, stall, please?”

Rebekah hung up without waiting for Klaus’s answer. They continued walking forward. Riah stopped Hayley from tripping over a branch. Every time that they found a body, they would stop and Sophie would do a small ritual. A glowing light left the witch’s body and flowed into the ground. Sophie would stand and start walking again without waiting to see if the other three were following her. Hayley kept her eyes peeled for any sign of the wolf that had saved her life. Riah looked for any other signs of something alive. The last thing they needed was to be caught by Marcel red-handed.

“So, this Harvest thingy—- tell me more,” Rebekah asked.

“Klaus said to wait,” Sophie said.

“Oh, you want to listen to him now,” Riah scoffed, “that’s surprising, considering that we’re in the bayou. Where he said not to go.”

“We’re here.” Hayley stopped.

The majority of the bodies were here. It was appalling. There were huge chunks of their flesh missing. Some of them had been beheaded, their heads lying several feet away from their bodies. The air was thick with the smell of blood. Anyone could have smelled it. Riah wrinkled her nose. Sophie looked about ready to puke as she saw what had really happened that night. She regained her composure and kneeled down again, getting all of her ingredients together.

Hayley was standing a little ways off, looking at the ground. Riah joined her. A massive pawprint was in the mud, clear as day. A little further down were claw marks in the trees. Distinct. Bloody. Sophie looked up in shock.

“Is that a wolf track?” Sophie asked.

They all looked up as footsteps crunched nearby. Rebekah and Riah got ready for a fight.

“Who’s there?” Rebekah called out.

A man approached them. He was a vampire. He locked eyes with Rebekah. The fear was apparent in his face as he realised who she was.

“What the hell? An Original?”

He immediately ran away. For a moment, Riah and Rebekah hesitated. Riah pushed Rebekah’s shoulder and they both sped off after him. Riah hadn’t been able to get a good whiff of his smell and he was moving so fast that he wasn’t leaving footprints. She looked everywhere she could without getting too far away from Hayley and Sophie. It became apparent that she wasn’t going to catch him. She ran a hand through her hair and cursed under her breath. She had no doubts that it was Marcel’s informant. Klaus was supposed to stall Marcel and his men. Damn. Damn! The only thing she could do now was head back to Sophie and Hayley. She hoped that the informant hadn’t realised that Hayley was a werewolf. 

Rebekah was already on the phone with Klaus by the time that Riah got back to the group. Riah put her hands in her pockets. Rebekah nodded.

“I’m on my way.” She hung up the phone. “Right. I’m off to distract Marcel so Klaus can take care of this informant. Riah, keep an eye on them, would you?”

“Obviously. Be careful.”

Rebekah nodded again and sped off towards the bar Klaus told them about. Sophie sighed in frustration and started working again. Riah crossed her arms. She had never trusted Sophie. How could she, after all of the underhanded things that she had done? She was desperate to consecrate these witches. She was desperate to find Davina. She was on some kind of a time crunch that she was reluctant to divulge. Something about the Harvest that she didn’t want Riah and the others to know. Azariah paced around the bodies while Sophie worked. Hayley leaned against a tree. 

“So tell me, Sophie Deveraux, when are you going to stop lying to us?” Riah asked finally.

Sophie stopped working. Riah had been grasping at straws with her theories. The reaction of the witch confirmed her suspicions. She was trying to hide it and she was doing a bad job of it. Riah had no intentions of letting this slide. Why was Sophie so reluctant to talk to them? What was it about this Harvest that she was so desperate to complete when she had been so adamantly against it? Practically begging for the elders to reconsider. There wasn’t a single doubt in Azariah’s mind that Sophie knew if she told them, she’d lose their already unwilling support in this war. 

Sophie stood. She brushed off her jeans. “We’re done here,” she said, “we should probably start heading back to the car.”

Riah watched Sophie step away from the bodies. The sun was starting to hang low in the sky. They needed to be getting home soon. Marcel wouldn’t be stalled by Klaus and Rebekah for too much longer. Riah sighed. She wasn’t going to be getting anymore information from Sophie today. That was fine. She had her ways of finding things out. She’d learn just what, exactly, Sophie and the other witches had done that made Davina go from thinking her position as a Harvest Girl was an honour to a curse. Why else would she had gone to help Marcel kill witches? Something had happened. Something drastic. That was the only certainty Riah had now.

They walked back to the car. Hayley stopped as Sophie threw her backpack into the trunk. She looked between Riah and the witch. Her hand was resting on top of her stomach protectively. Riah stood next to Hayley with her arms still crossed. Elijah would be home soon enough. He was talking to Davina, who no doubt was telling him everything that happened. That was how she would learn the truth then. She could wait. 

“Those people, all this, because of a vision about my baby you don't think is true?” Hayley asked.

Sophie sighed, slamming the back of her truck closed. “Look, I love Sabine, but she's the witch equivalent of a drama queen. I've learned to take little stock in whatever she says or sees. Just kinda wish she'd kept her mouth shut.”

“The Harvest ritual-- you said you didn't believe in it. Were you right?”

“No. I saw it with my own eyes. It was working. It was real.”

“So, how can you be so sure Sabine's vision isn't?”

Sophie looked at Riah. She didn’t have an answer to that question. She got into the driver’s side of the truck and started the vehicle. Riah opened the door for Hayley before climbing in herself. The ride to the cemetery was silent. Azariah brought Hayley back to her car and watched as Sophie drove off. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to let her consecrate those remains. The last thing the witches needed was more power. Not if they were that close to finishing the Harvest. She looked down at Hayley in the passenger seat, her hadn still over her stomach as she stared at the street. Riah sighed. This whole city was crawling with complications.

She slid into the driver’s seat and took Hayley back to the plantation. Rebekah was already home, sitting at the piano, playing a few loose notes. She smiled when she saw Riah and Hayley come from the door. She grabbed the decanter from the side table and poured a couple of drinks, handing one to Riah. She looked at Hayley with an annoyed but loving expression she usually reserved for Riah or Elijah.

“I don't care if we have to get you a leash, that was your last trip to the Bayou. What is it with you and those wolves, anyway?” Rebekah asked.

Riah chuckled a little as she took a sip of her bourbon. The thought of Hayley or her little wolf child on a leash was a little amusing. Not enough so that she would ever actually do it, of course. She wasn’t _that_ sadistic.

Hayley took a deep breath. “I feel like we're connected somehow. I don't know. Maybe it's just some pipe dream that I have of finding any real family out there. But sometimes, when I feel like it's me against the world, it keeps me going. “

Riah and Rebekah looked at Hayley sympathetically. One of the downsides of immortality was the constant feeling of loneliness. Truly, the only thing that any of the Originals could see as constant were their siblings. Even that was taken away from them. The longer they were alive, the more they grew used to the idea that everyone they loved would die. Rebekah had never lost hope that she would find hers. Riah was lucky that she had Elijah. She knew that. In the 1000 or so years when they hadn’t been together, she’d had other lovers. People that she truly could see spending an eternity with. One by one, she lost them all. She’d been left alone. Just like the rest of them.

“Well, if you ask me, family is a pain in the behind,” Rebekah scoffed.

“And you’re not alone,” Riah said. She took Hayely’s hand, gently running her thumb over Hayley’s knuckles. “Did you not see how Rebekah and I ran through that bayou for you? Do you think we’d do that for just anyone?”

Hayley smiled softly. It really did seem like she had never had someone that she could rely on. Somehow, that broke Azariah’s heart. Hayley was a sweet girl. She really was. She was kind, strong-willed, stubborn… practically a Mikaelson already. She was never going to have to be alone again. As far as Riah was concerned, Hayley was family now, with or without the child. 

The front door opened. All three heads turned to see Niklaus walking in. 

“Nik, finally! What–”

Elijah walked through the door from behind Klaus. He had a huge smile on his face as he saw his sister. Azariah let out a choked sound, dropping her glass onto the piano. The bourbon splashed around, a few drops hitting the varnished wood. Rebekah ran to him, hugging him tight. Elijah locked eyes with Riah over Rebekah’s shoulder. They separated. Riah was quick to launch herself into his arms. He let out a small puff of air and had to take a few steps back to regain his balance. She buried her face in his neck, taking in his smell. Cinnamon and citrus. Just a hint of death. He had been in a coffin until a day ago, after all. She closed her eyes, running a hand through his hair. He was home. Finally. She pulled far enough away so that she could kiss him. It was surprisingly tame. She was considerate of the eyes watching them.

“Welcome home,” she said softly.

“It’s good to be home.” 

He walked over to Hayley. She promptly slapped him, earning a surprised look from Rebekah and Elijah and a guffaw from Klaus. She put her hands on her hips. Elijah gently touched his cheek. He had the hint of a smile on his face.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” she said. She started to walk towards the study. “Welcome home.”

Elijah’s first order of business was to call a meeting in the study. All five of them gathered. He regarded the room he was in carefully, looking over everyone. With a deep breath, he started to speak.

“Everything that brought us here to New Orleans was a lie. This story that Sophie Deveraux fabricated, this struggle for control of the French Quarter, this war between vampires and witches, wasn't over territory at all, this was over Davina,” he began. “Eight months ago, Sophie Deveraux and her sister Jane-Anne lost everything. Now, four months after that, a young pregnant girl wanders into their restaurant. Suddenly, all hope is renewed. Jane-Anne actually sacrificed her life so that her sister can use you to find Davina. If Sophie Deveraux is successful in capturing Davina, she can return Jane-Anne's daughter back to life. We thought we'd come here to wage a war for power. This is about family. In order to return her niece to life, Sophie Deveraux will fight to the death. That makes her more dangerous than anyone.”

“Then we need to make sure that her death means nothing to us,” Riah said. 

“Yes. I may have a way around that. It will have to wait until the morning, I am afraid. We all need to get some rest.”

Klaus didn’t need to be told twice. He wasn’t happy that Elijah had called a meeting of any sort now that he was back. Rebekah gave Elijah another long hug before heading upstairs. Hayley headed into the kitchen. Azariah turned, walking upstairs towards her room. Elijah wasn’t too far behind her. Riah smiled. She had missed him so, so much. She’d allowed herself to be distracted by other things because that was what she needed to function. Now that he was home, she was starting to feel like herself again. She stood by one of the windows, looking out at the slowly dying parties of New Orleans. She glanced at Elijah. He was still looking a little dead. He probably hadn’t had enough blood since his return. He wouldn’t have dared to feed from a child like Davina.

Riah reached out for Elijah. He walked over to her, letting her wrap her arms around him and bring him close. She rested her cheek against his chest and closed her eyes. She listened to his steady heart. She just wanted to enjoy his presence next to her for the time being. He had been gone for so long. She hadn’t even been able to talk to him. Elijah ran his fingers through her hair. He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

She moved away from him and put her hands on either side of his face. She was making sure that he was really there. He leaned into her touch with his eyes half closed. Riah brushed her thumb across his cheek gently.

“You were supposed to call me,” she joked.

Elijah smiled again. “Yes, well, I ran into some complications.”

“You’re pale,”

“Mm,”

“Have you eaten anything since you woke up?”

Elijah shrugged. “A drop of blood here and there. I was rather anxious to return home.”

“You have to take better care of yourself, Elijah.” Azariah dragged a nail across her wrist, making a cut just deep enough to draw blood. Elijah licked his lips, looking up at her as if for permission. “Go ahead. Someone needs to make sure that you aren’t malnourished.”

Elijah latched himself to her arm as gently as he could manage. His fangs dug into her skin. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back. She used her other hand to gently brush his hair back. He kept his eyes closed, doing his best to hide the face of the monster they all had within them. Riah pulled him up to look at her. She brushed a finger across the dark veins under his eyes. Her blood made his lips red. The veins retreated and his eyes returned to normal. 

“Better?” she asked softly.

“Immensely.”

Elijah put a hand on her waist and drew her in close as he pressed his lips against hers in the first proper kiss they’d had in months now. The metallic taste of her own blood was intermingled with him as he deepened the kiss. She yelped as Elijah pushed her back against the door with surprising fervor. His body enveloped hers, trapping her against the cold wood. He cradled the sides of her face with his hands to keep her steady. He gently bit her bottom lip, his teeth clinking against hers in his eagerness. She wound her fingers through his hair, fingertips digging into his scalp to bring him in and keep him close. Elijah groaned softly into the kiss.

He moved his lips to her jaw, pressing kisses along the outline until he met the soft underside of her neck. He nipped gently at the tender skin. Right next to her carotid artery. One of his hands moved to grip at the fabric of her shirt and he bit into her neck. 

“Elijah,” she moaned.

She clamped a hand over her mouth as he drank her blood, licking and sucking, making sure no blood dripped down her neck, satisfied as her body started to tremble against him. He started to kiss her skin again and each time his lips found a new place she let out a small melody of moans. She was doing everything in her power to keep her voice down. There were far too many super ears in this house for her to be so loud. A much more selfish part of her wanted to indulge herself.

“Elijah…” her voice shook, “we… ah… they’ll hear…”

“That’s never stopped us before,” he muttered, spreading his kisses down her shoulder. 

He pulled down one of her sleeves, revealing her shoulder and ran his tongue against her burning skin. She let out a soft mewl as his hands slipped past the hem of her jeans, nails digging into her flesh to pull her hips flush to his. She did nothing to dissuade him, moaning quietly as his lips captured hers again. It barely managed to stifle her cry as his leg wedged itself inbetween her thighs.

“Surely, you can stay quiet for me.” His breath tickled the shell of her ear.

She positively melted into his touch, losing whatever control she convinced herself she’d had over the situation. It had been too long since he’d touched her. Since she’d heard the sound of his voice. She was helpless under his careful ministrations. Her face was flushed a deep rose red. 

“Even after centuries of knowing you,” she said softly, “you still manage to do this to me,” 

Elijah hummed a reply and fixated on her face. She turned away from his intense gaze. He didn’t exactly tower over her, but in that moment she felt small compared to him. He gently took her hands in his own and pressed a kiss to her palm.

“Careful now,” he teased, “you might make me think too highly of myself,”

“And we wouldn’t want that.”

“No. Absolutely not.”

“That would be-” Azariah began. Elijah slid his hand into her panties, cutting her off for a moment, “-a true shame.”

She bit her bottom lip to try and keep herself quiet as his index finger teased her entrance and brushed against her clit. His fingers were hot against her skin. She tilted her head back until it landed against the door with a soft thud. Her hands slid into his hair. Elijah attached himself to her neck again, kissing instead of full-on biting. She took a deep breath and pulled him away. He looked at her in confusion. She shook her head.

“I should be taking care of _you,”_ she whispered into his ear. 

She took his hand and led him to the chair in the corner of the room. She pushed him down. Slowly but surely, she was taking back the control she was used to having. She hooked her thumbs around the waistband of her pants, pushing them down her thighs. Elijah’s fingers dug into the arms of the chair as he watched her move, unbuttoning her shirt at an agonising pace. She tossed the fabric to the side. Elijah followed it with his eyes. He licked his lips. Azariah braced a hand against the arm of the chair as settled into his lap, straddling his thighs. 

“You’ve been through quite the ordeal,” she pressed her lips to his earlobe, letting her teeth graze his skin. “You always take care of others before yourself. It’s the way that you’ve always been. You should let other people help you more often. You need to let _me_ help _you._ ”

“Is that a promise or a threat?”

There was a sparkle in his eyes that was almost masked by his lust.

“Yes.”

She let her fingers carefully explore his chest through his shirt. The rigid lines of his collar bones. The soft skin that was just barely exposed by his open collar. He kept his hands still as she took all of him in. She brushed her fingers along the line of his jaw. He finally moved, cradling her hands in his. The tips of her toes just barely touched the ground in this position. He shifted to try and make them both a little more comfortable. Riah dipped down to catch Elijah’s lips with her own. His lips parted and he licked into her mouth.

She moaned softly into his mouth, relaxing against him. Elijah grabbed a hold of her jaw to get her mouth perfectly against his. It made everything worth it. The waiting. The worrying. Not knowing where he was for literal months because of his bastard brother. She could do it all again if she got the promise of this kiss again. This feeling. She could chase it a million times and it would never grow old. Not when he kissed her like that. Not when he made those low sounds in his throat and moved against her like they were always made to fit together.

He wrapped his arm around her lower back, pressing her tight against him. He didn’t move his other hand from her jaw. They were both dragging this out, relishing the moments when they could just be together. No outside world coming to break them down or tear them apart. She bit his lower lip. He sucked in a breath as she reached between the two of them, sliding her hand into his pants. She practically purred into his kisses when she felt how hard he was for her.

She hooked her panties to the side and moved her hips forward, dragging her slick heat against him. Elijah shuddered against her. Both hands dug into her waist but he didn’t move her. She pressed a gentle kiss to his neck. She considered biting down, letting his blood slide down her throat. No. This was about his pleasure. At the rate he had been drinking her own, they were already going to have to feed in the morning anyway. 

She wrapped her fingers through his hair, pulling his head back slightly and exposing his neck more to her. She pulled her hips up, tilting ever so slightly, positioning the tip of his cock at her entrance. She bit his neck hard enough to bruise, not to break skin and slowly sank down on him. Elijah shuddered again, breathing her name into her ear. She moved down until he was sheathed to the hilt. She took a sharp breath, readjusting herself to his size.

Elijah buried his hands in her hair and brought his lips to the crook of her neck. She gradually moved her hips up, keeping her movements slow and precise. He squeezed her thighs. She whimpered lightly. He felt amazing. She clutched at the fabric of his shirt. She ground against his cock just enough to keep them both wanting. Her own pleasure was building, simmering under the surface and threatening to burn her through. She nipped at his Adam’s apple. It wasn’t often that Elijah relinquished his power. It sent lightning down her spine. Every nerve was alive. She started to pick up her pace.

“Do you know how much I missed you?” she gasped. “Do you know how much I missed this?”

Elijah growled. He grabbed her tightly, lifting her off of him. He carried her to the bed and practically threw her down on the mattress. She bounced back. He shoved his arms under her legs and locked her ankles on his shoulders. He thrust himself back into her, setting the pace in a whole new way. It was becoming increasingly harder for her to stay quiet as he pounded into her. Almost as if he sensed exactly that, he clapped a hand over her mouth. He buried his face in her skin to stifle his own sounds. She dug her nails into his arms as his hips collided roughly with hers.

She threw her head back in a silent cry as she came. Elijah kept going until he reached his own high. He couldn’t hold it back for too long. He cursed under his breath and filled her up. His movements slowed. After a while, he moved her legs off of his shoulders and gently kissed her skin. They both regained their breath. He laid next to her and pulled her into his arms. She turned to face him. He had a smile on his face. She ran a finger over his bottom lip.

“Welcome back, Elijah.”


	42. Just to Burn: Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been listening to Dungeons and Daddies while writing recently. Also my G key is broken. so. Uh. Waiting for one of those to arrive soon.

Azariah woke up the happiest she had been since she’d come to New Orleans. Elijah’s arms were around her waist, keeping her back close to his chest and he’d buried his head in the crook of her neck. She kept her eyes closed for a little while longer. She knew that as soon as they both started to stir, they were going to have to go downstairs and form a plan to help Hayley. She wanted to enjoy his company for as long as she could. Slowly, the sun came up and light started to break through the curtains. There was no more hiding. She turned to face Elijah. He still had his eyes closed. She brushed his hair back and smiled. He always looked peaceful when he was sleeping. All of the worry was gone. He no longer had the weight of the family on his shoulders. She liked seeing him like that.

Elijah opened his eyes. He smiled when he saw her. He put a hand on her cheek, brushing his thumb against her skin. She happily leaned into his touch. 

“Good morning,” he whispered.

“Good morning,” she smiled. “How’re you feeling?”

“Significantly better now that you’re here.”

He kissed her forehead and rolled away. She groaned as he got out of bed, reaching after him weakly. She rolled onto her back and looked at the ceiling again. He was home, just like she had wanted. Now, she just had to worry about the pregnant werewolf and the ever looming threat that Klaus would kill her son, whether it was on purpose or inadvertently because of Marcel. Things were going to be just as complicated as they were before. She got out of bed and picked out one of Elijah’s shirts, pulling it on, He glanced back at her and raised an eyebrow.

“No shirts of your own?” he quipped.

She shrugged. “None quite as comfortable. Besides,” Riah sauntered over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck, “you have to admit that I look good.”

“You always look good. You’re beautiful. Wearing my shirt. Wearing your own. Wearing _nothing_ ,” he grinned a little. “You’re the very image of perfection.”

He leaned down and kissed her. She sighed, not wanting to let go but knowing that she had to. She rolled up her sleeves and found a suitable pair of jeans. Elijah was already in a new suit, ready to face the day and the challenges that were sure to come with it. She straightened his tie out before letting him leave. She watched him go down stairs towards the study. He was going to look for Esther’s grimoires. He’d promised Davina spells in return for his freedom. If they played their cards right, they could have Hayley unlinked by day’s end. Azariah had a pretty good idea of which spell they could use while keeping their intentions to themselves. She wasn’t a fan of the idea of using a child to do what they needed to do, but she was the only witch in the Quarter that could do magic without being killed. Besides, the less leverage the coven had over the Mikaelsons, the more likely they would be able to keep Davina alive. They certainly weren’t about to let her be sacrificed for power.

Riah skipped a few steps as she went to the first floor. She headed to one of the freezers in the back room, pulling out a blood bag and pouring two glasses, one for her and one for Elijah. They were both going to need it. Vampire blood could only sustain both parties for so long before they needed to feed again. She walked back to the foyer, practically running into Klaus coming inside along the way. He was pulling some blonde along with him. She’d clearly been compelled from the glazed look in her eyes. She was dressed in hardly anything at all. Probably some tourist that he’d picked up off the street. He looked around Azariah.

“Where is my darling brother? I come bearing gifts,” he said.

Riah raised her eyebrow. “That’s a peace offering for Elijah? And you think that’ll make everything okay?”

“I thought it might help.”

Klaus shrugged. Elijah turned the corner with Esther’s book in his hand. He looked the blonde up and down and shook his head with a heavy sigh. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“You can’t buy forgiveness, Niklaus. Perhaps try to show some character growth.”

He patted Klaus’s shoulder and walked into the living room without saying anything else. Azariah tried, and failed, to hide her smile as she followed him. No one could put Klaus in his place quite like Elijah could. There was a certain level of pettiness that only he could give off. Klaus sighed in frustration as they left him standing in the foyer. Elijah sat in one of the chairs. Azariah was perfectly content to settle into his lap as he opened up the grimoire and handed him the glass of blood. He gave her a look and she shrugged. It was the best way to make sure that they could both see which spells he was looking at. Elijah had never really been one to practice when he was a human. Riah had seen most of the spells at some point before she’d been turned. She’d written a grimoire of her own, too, that was somewhere amongst all of her things. She’d never gotten a chance to finish it, of course. After she’d been married, she’d started to focus more on being a good wife than being a good witch.

Klaus came back in with the girl. From the way he positioned himself, it looked like he was trying to make some kind of a business proposal to the two of them. He put a hand on his hip, the other on the back of the girl’s neck. Elijah didn’t look up from the grimoire. 

“Well, you have to be a bit peckish, what after spending so much time locked away,” Klaus scoffed.

Elijah held up his glass. “Thankfully, someone who didn’t contribute to said entrapment has already thought about that.”

He kissed her cheek and took a sip before turning back to his search. Riah shrugged again. Klaus bit his tongue for a moment before digging into the girl’s neck with his fangs. Elijah briefly looked up, rolling his eyes as Klaus made loud noises to exaggerate his actions. They both ignored him, even when he dropped the girl’s body on the coffee table. Klaus was clearly annoyed with them for not reacting to his shenanigans. It was unfortunate that the girl was dead, but Klaus was going to kill her regardless of if Elijah took his meek attempt at peace or not. It was one of his ways of throwing a mini temper tantrum.

He stormed off into the next room. Riah shook her head and took a sip of some of the blood from her glass. She flipped the page in the grimoire. Klaus huffed as he came back into the room. He was carrying a vinyl record and a book with him. He went to the record player and turned on some classical music before slumping onto the couch across from them and opened his book. It was a book of poems from the 18th century, no doubt an original printing. Riah wasn’t sure if he was actually reading it or if he was keeping an eye on her and Elijah to see if they made a move for the body, still dripping blood down her neck from his bite. Whichever it was, as long as he was quiet about it, she didn’t care. She just wanted to find the spell and get it to Davina as soon as they could.

Rebekah came into the room and crossed her arms. She inspected the scene: three Original vampires gathered around a dead body, reading from ancient books and showing no interest in communicating with one another. It almost could have been the set up to a really bad joke.

“So, this is what you do the first time we're back together as a family? Vampire book club?” Rebekah scoffed.

None of them looked up from the pages to acknowledge her words. Klaus turned the page. “Reading edifies the mind, sister. Isn't that right, Elijah?”

“Yes, that's quite right, Niklaus,” he said. 

Riah turned the page for him. She read a little bit about the spell. It wasn’t the right one. Just a fire spell. She knew it was in this volume, somewhere.

“And what's this business?” Rebekah gestured to the body.

“This is a…” Elijah waved his hand vaguely at the girl as he searched for the right word, “...peace offering. 

“I presumed,” Klaus sighed, “after so much time desiccating in a coffin, that my big brother might be a bit peckish.”

“And I explained to my little brother that forgiveness cannot be bought. I'd simply prefer to see a change in behavior that indicates contrition and personal growth.” Elijah shook his head in annoyance. “Not this nonsense.”

“Well, I couldn't very well let her go to waste, could I?”

“Well, I suppose I'll go fetch the rubbish bin, because she's staining a two hundred-year-old carpet.”

Rebekah pointed to the carpet. She was right. Quite a bit of blood had dripped onto the ground. They probably could’ve tried to put plastic down or something, but it had slipped their minds in the moment. Elijah looked up from the book and over Azariah’s shoulder. He clicked his tongue against his teeth.

“Ah, yes.”

Rebekah threw her hands into the air in frustration and left the room. They all turned back to their books and to ignoring each other. Hayley walked through the room, yawning with her hand on her stomach. Elijah smiled at her as she passed by them. She headed into the kitchen. Azariah excused herself, pointing to the page Elijah was on. They were getting closer to being on the right track now. He gently grasped at her hand, kissing her knuckles before she left. Klaus occasionally looked up from whatever poem he’d settled on. His eyes followed Riah as she went into the kitchen.

She saw Hayley digging through the fridge, looking for something to eat for breakfast. Riah walked over towards her, setting aside the ice cream and other things. 

“Good morning,” she said with a light chuckle. “Anything I can help you with?”

“Yeah. Where the hell do you guys keep the milk? I know you don’t drink it, but surely we have some here?” Hayley huffed.

“Mm. Have you checked the fridge?”

Hayley gave her a look that could kill a lesser vampire. Riah grinned as she opened the fridge door, pulling out a carton of milk and orange juice from the shelves and putting them on the countertop. Hayley was grateful.

“These cravings are getting out of control,” she sighed in frustration. “I hate it.”

“Yes, I remember those being the worst,”

“You remember pregnancy cravings?”

“Yes, Hayley, I do, despite it having been 1,000 years ago. And it was a lot to actually find what you were craving in those days. I remember my husband, Finn - I told you about him, didn’t I? Anyway, I was craving this berry.” Riah went back to the fridge and pushed a few things to the side. “He went out of his way to find it. His father yelled at him for wasting resources for something so silly. But he still did it. Again and again, as many times as I asked.”

It was nice to think about those times. It hurt, too. She didn’t want to remember Finn in his final moments, but remembering him at all brought it back. The horrible nights they had had before he died, right after he’d been brought back. Dying in her arms. All of it. She couldn’t let those things poison the good. He’d been a good husband. A good father. He’d just lost his way. 

Riah picked up the small carton of fruit and handed it to Hayley. She raised an eyebrow.

“Blueberries? Your big pregnancy craving was blueberries?” Hayley laughed.

“You jest, but it was all the rage in 997. A true delicacy.”

“I keep forgetting that you’re, like, ancient.”

“I’m going to choose to take that as a compliment.”

Rebekah stomped through the kitchen with a trash bin behind her. “We need bleach,” she said.

Elijah got out of her way before leaning against the doorframe. He looked from Riah to Hayley. Riah wondered how much of her story he had heard. She was still gauging just how he felt about hearing stories of her marriage to his late older brother. It was complicated territory. They did their best not to talk about it for those very reasons. Hayley popped a couple of blueberries into her mouth. 

“You know, I do hope my siblings were hospitable to you in my absence,” Elijah said.

Hayley laughed bitterly. “In your absence, as you like to call it- which is a way-too-polite way of saying that your brother put a dagger in your heart- I have been attacked by French Quarter vampires, I've had to live in a house with a secret dungeon full of coffins, and I was nearly murdered by witches who are convinced my baby is Lucifer.”

Elijah smiled sympathetically. He walked over to the cupboard, grabbing a bowl and the small bag of cereal they had and poured Hayley a bowl. He slid it across the counter towards her. She looked down into the bowl and sighed. She looked at Riah.

“They've been fine. Your siblings are weirdly protective, I know I have you to thank for that.”

Hayley gently pushed Riah’s shoulder. Riah gave her a small smile in response. She hadn’t really thought she’d been _that_ protective of Hayley. Then again, she did threaten Agnes. And Sophie. And several other people that had hurt or tried to hurt Hayley or her child. At the very least, she thought she’d given Hayley a little bit more freedom than Klaus had. She tried to, anyway. Elijah pressed a kiss to Riah’s forehead as he passed by her to get to the coffee maker.

“I'm just happy to see that you're in one piece.” Elijah smiled at Hayley, patting her hand a couple of times.”So, back to the murderous witches. I have some concerns.”

“They're evil. And, my life is still magically linked to Sophie Deveraux, which is not comforting.”

“Well, I think Elijah and I have found a solution to that little problem,” Riah said.

Rebekah came back through the kitchen, dragging the corpse across the floor behind her. Riah moved out of her way.

“I am all for it. As soon as they're unlinked, we get to leave this crap town. Who do we have to kill?”

“Probably no one,” Elijah said after a moment’s hesitation. Hayley and Azariah both gave him a look of disbelief. He rolled his eyes and sighed. “All right, potentially everyone.”

“There you go,” Riah joked.

Hayley sat at the kitchen island with her bowl of cereal, the ghost of a smile on her lips. She was glad that she wasn’t going to be stuck at the whim of a witch soon. Riah could tell. Azariah ruffled Hayley’s hair as she walked by on her way back to the living room. Klaus was still sitting on the couch reading his poem. Rebekah was dutifully scrubbing at the carpet to get the blood out. Riah picked up Esther’s grimoire and flipped through a few more pages. For one of Ayana’s students, she was fairly unorganised. It was nearly impossible to find the spell that they were going to need.

Riah ran a finger over the ink. It had been a long time since she’d thought about being a witch. She’d gotten so used to the feeling of vampirism that she could hardly even remember what it had felt like. Being connected to everything was powerful in its own right. Azariah had never really cared about that power when she was learning magic. She just wanted to make her brother’s life a little bit easier. Maybe she had. He’d never really been one to talk about those kinds of things. A product of Mikael’s harsh methods of parenting, she was sure. She sighed and shook her head. She needed to focus on finding the right unlinking spell. Davina didn’t need to know exactly what spell she was performing, she just needed to perform it. Without Hayley or Sophie present. In truth, there was probably only one spell that would work well.

Rebekah stopped scrubbing for a moment to look at Klaus’s book. She raised an eyebrow.

“Poetry about poisoned apples from dead trees. Looks like someone's worried about impending daddy-hood,” she said to Niklaus.

Klaus shook his head. “Nonsense. Elijah's back. In his presence, all problems turn to pixie-dust and float away!”

The two of them grinned. Riah sighed and shook her head, hiding her own smile behind the grimoire. It was a little harmless teasing from younger siblings. Besides, even Riah had to admit Elijah had a tendency to make big problems seem like little ones. She turned back to the grimoire. There. That was the spell.

“Strange,” Elijah said as he came into the room, “I don't recall any pixie-dust from the darkness of the coffin I was recently forced to endure.”

He walked to Azariah. She gently pulled the pages out of the grimoire and handed them to him. Elijah folded them neatly in his handkerchief, placing the spells into his inner jacket pocket. Riah closed the book and dropped it on the side table. Rebekah looked at the two of them curiously.

“What are you doing with Mother's spellbook?”

“Well, in exchange for my freedom, I promised the witch Davina that I would share a few pages from Mother's grimoire. To help her learn to control her magic. I thought we'd begin with a little unlinking spell,” Elijah explained.

“Wait, you want to use her to unlink Hayley from Sophie Deveraux?”

“Sophie brought us here under false pretenses. She doesn't just want us to take down Marcel and his minions, she wants to take Davina back. So, she yoked her own cause to ours with magic, threats, and half-truths. Well, no more. As of now, our deal with Sophie Deveraux is null and void.” The four of them looked between each other. Klaus and Rebekah shared a wry smile. Elijah turned to his brother. “Niklaus, I need you to come with me and Azariah. I need five minutes alone with Davina. You need to make certain that I am not interrupted.” He pointed at Rebekah. “You stay here and watch Hayley.”

Elijah turned and left the room without looking to see if the others were following him. Rebekah and Klaus were obviously annoyed. Someone in this damn house had to take charge of the situation. Klaus certainly hadn’t been doing a good job of it.

“How did I get elected supernanny?” Rebekah complained.

“More importantly, who put him in charge?”

“Well, let’s vote then,” Riah joked. “All those in favour of the brother that _doesn’t_ put us in coffins say ‘aye’”. Rebekah and Riah both said aye. Klaus glared at them. “There you have it. C’mon, Klaus.”

****

* * *

****

“Now, let me do the talking at first,” Elijah said.

Azariah nodded. They went into the church and headed up the stairs. Klaus was staying on the balcony, making sure that no one would come and interrupt them. Azariah was there to help Davina with the spell for a short time. She had been a powerful witch in her own right when she was human. It had been a while, but she could still remember how to explain those spells. She didn’t know how long it would take and they were going to have to find Sophie at some point to tell her the deal was off in person. Riah had to admit she was a little scared to meet this witch. She had done things that were truly dangerous to an Original. Not just anyone could do that. And they were planning on using her without her knowledge. Riah didn’t feel great about that, either, but it had to be done. They needed to keep Hayley safe. Any means necessary.

Elijah knocked on the doorframe. Davina was behind an easel. Riah wasn’t sure what she was expecting. She hadn’t been thinking like the witches of fairytales and things, of course, but she also hadn’t pictured someone so young. When she thought of witches, she always pictured adults. Davina really was just a child. She looked excited when she saw Elijah and apprehensive when she noticed Azariah. Elijah reached into his jacket and pulled out the pages.

“I made you a promise,” he said. “This is my friend, Azariah. She used to be a witch, like you. I brought her to help. May we come in?”

Davina nodded. “Come in.”

Azariah stepped into the attic and looked around. A violin was resting on the bed. Elijah handed Davina the pages. She eagerly spread them across her table. Riah crossed her arms as Davina looked over everything. Davina furrowed her brow as she read over it. Elijah left them alone, going to join Klaus in another part of the church.

“It’s a spell of unknotting?”

Riah produced the complicated knot, presenting it to Davina. “This is a sanguinum knot, a sort of… representational magic. It’s meant to teach focus. Control. I was a little older than you when it was first presented to me. It seems simple. Believe me, I know. I promise you that it isn’t.” She sat down next to Davina for a moment. “You lack control, yes?”

Davina looked at the ground and nodded slowly. She had a guilty look on her face. She might have hurt someone that she cared about. It wasn’t completely uncommon. Especially if she was carrying around a bunch of power that didn’t belong to her.

“This spell requires focus. From that focus, you’ll get your control. Magic is oftentimes linked to emotions. Anger, joy, frustration… you have to learn to control them so they don’t control _you_. Can you do that?”

Davina nodded. 

“Wonderful. If you can master control, I’ll bring you a new spell. Any one that you want. I promise.”

Davina looked at her eagerly. Riah smiled warmly at her. She stood up, setting the knot on the table for her before leaving. She would’ve stayed longer if she had the chance. She wanted to help Davina, but she had to put her family first. She’d never been a fan of using children in any capacity. She hoped that Davina could forgive her for this. She’d bring her a new spell like she promised. It was just going to take a while. Elijah was standing by the door again. He had a worried expression on his face. She glanced back at Davina, working diligently on the spell. She waited until they were with Klaus before speaking.

“What’s wrong, Elijah?”

“Rebekah called. The witches are up to something. We need to find Sophie Deveraux. Now.” Klaus said.

“Then what are we waiting for?”

Riah bounded down the stairs towards the car. Sophie would either be at the restaurant or in the cemetery. Was it possible that she already knew they were unbinding her from Hayley? That would explain any kind of retaliation. That extreme faction of witches, as Sophie had put it, was still out there. Klaus and Elijah were close behind her. She didn’t have any doubts that whatever was happening was bad for Hayley and for the baby. Riah should have killed Agnes that day she took Hayley to the bayou. She wouldn’t make that mistake a second time.

The three Originals rushed into Rousseau’s. It was almost entirely empty except for a few patrons here and there. Riah ignored all of them as she headed towards the back room. Sophie was nowhere to be seen, but Sabine, the witch who had started all of this with her prophecy, was slowly waking up. Elijah went to her and helped her up. Azariah stopped in front of her and narrowed her eyes. Sabine looked from Azariah to Elijah. Something unfamiliar passed in her eyes as she regarded them. Riah didn’t care enough to think about what it meant. She had other things to worry about at the moment.

“What happened?” Elijah asked gruffly.

“It was Agnes.” Sabine groaned. She rubbed her head and looked around. She sighed. “Her men took Sophie.”

“Day one with you in charge, brother, and already the witch linked to Hayley has been abducted by zealots.”

“Shut it, Klaus,” Riah growled. “Where is she?”

Sabine shook her head. “If I tell you where Agnes is, you'll just kill her.”

“Isn't that obvious?” Klaus scoffed.

“Look, I know she's a little... coo-coo, but she's our last living Elder. That might not mean a lot to you, but it means plenty to us. The Elders are the only ones who can do important spells.”

“Like completing the Harvest ritual?” Elijah asked.

Sabine looked confused and shocked that they knew that little tidbit. She took a deep breath, passing her hand over her forehead.

“You know about that?”

“Oh, you'd be _astounded_ by the things I know.”

“Allow me to entertain you with today's list of priorities.” Klaus began. “One, unlink your friend Sophie so she no longer controls the fate of the woman carrying my child. Two, convince my brother to accept my heartfelt apologies for some recently dodgy behavior. Three, perhaps even do the same with my former sister-in-law here. Four… there is no four.”

“I believe what my brother is attempting to communicate here is that neither the life of this Elder, nor the Harvest ritual, nor your coven's connection to magic are of any relevance to him whatsoever.” Elijah put his hands in his pockets. “Now talk.”

Sabine sighed heavily. There was no way that she was going to get out of this without telling them everything that she knew and she knew that. Agnes’s survival was up in the air for now, depending on what exactly she was trying to do. Sabine reluctantly told them that if the witches were going to try anything, they’d go to the cemetery. It was safe from most vampires. Luckily, the Originals had all been invited inside already. All they needed to do was get there before Sophie could leave. Klaus led the charge out this time. They needed to find Sophie. Things were going very poorly.

Elijah took Azariah’s hand, trying to reassure her or himself. She wasn’t sure which she would have preferred. She just wanted to get all of this over and done with. Hayley had been used as a pawn for long enough and now, Agnes had the person she was linked to held hostage. It showed how much the witches actually cared about their own. They had to know that if anything happened to Hayley and the baby, they would be the ones to suffer for it. None of the Originals were particularly forgiving and Klaus was downright vengeful 24/7. They would pay for this. Maybe Sabine’s vision was right, after all. To protect that child, Azariah would do just about anything.

They burst into the cemetery and marched to the mausoleum. That seemed to be where most of the witch business was done in this place. They couldn’t have done any kind of spell without being found out, but they had taken Sophie for a reason. She just didn’t understand why or what they wanted to do. Besides killing Hayley’s unborn daughter, of course.

They got into the tomb and found Sophie hanging from chains. Klaus and Elijah rushed to pull her down. She rubbed her hands. A little blood was running down her neck. Just like Rebekah said had happened to Hayley. She closed her eyes and groaned. Azariah could feel the heat radiating off of her. She had one hell of a fever.

“Agnes stuck me with a needle,” Sophie said. “Cursed objects were created a long time ago. We use them so we don't get busted by Marcel for doing magic. The one she used is called the Needle of Sorrows. It was cursed in 1860 when…”

“Jump ahead a few decades and tell us what it does, love?” Klaus crossed his arms.

“It has only one purpose: to kill a child in utero by raising her blood temperature.”

“It’s for a miscarriage,” Riah said in disgust.

The three of them shared a look. Sophie nodded. She did look a little guilty for what was happening.

“So, how much time do we have to fix this?”

“It will do what it's meant to by tonight's high tide. And believe me, it will work. I saw her use a similar object on a kid who went mad and killed a bunch of priests.”

Klaus’s expression grew even more grim as she finished speaking. “I'd like to have a chat with this Agnes. Where can I find her?”

“You won't. There are a thousand places she could hole up to wait it out.,” Sophie scoffed.

“That's precisely why we need to unlink you from Hayley. No more danger toward her or the child.”

Sophie shook her head in confusion, looking between them all. So they really didn’t know. She stood in front of Elijah as he tried to leave the tomb.

“No, what? If I am not linked to Hayley, I lose my leverage on you. We had a deal!”

“We are not on the same side, Sophie Deveraux,” Elijah said darkly. “Our deal no longer stands!”

Sophie scoffed in outrage. Elijah grabbed her arm and started pulling her out of the tomb. If they were going to have to fix something the witches did, she was damn well coming with them, whether she wanted to or not. Klaus hesitated. Azariah looked back at him curiously. Elijah kept moving with Sophie, not wanting to waste anymore time than they already had.

“I’m going to talk to the human faction. Perhaps they can help me find our elusive witch.”

“Hurry up, Klaus, and call me when you find her,” Riah said. 

He nodded and went off in the opposite direction. Azariah ran to catch up to Sophie and Elijah. He pushed Sophie as gently as he could manage into the back seat of his car. They drove fast. They needed to. According to the update Rebekah had sent, Hayley’s fever had gone up significantly, too. Sophie had a couple of ideas on how they could try to keep the fever down until the unlinking was complete. She understood that there was nothing she could do to stop it, but she knew what would happen if she let that child die. As soon as the link was broken, she’d be killed if that happened. Riah was still debating killing her anyway.

They rushed into the house. Rebekah was sitting with Hayley, dabbing a wet cloth over her forehead. She looked absolutely appalled to see Sophie walking with them. She stood and put her hands on her hips. Azariah took her place by Hayley’s side. She took the werewolf’s hand and tried to smile reassuringly. It was fairly certain that it wasn’t working.

“What the hell is she doing here?” Rebekah sneered.

“I'm trying to help,” Sophie sighed.

“Help? You're the reason we're in this bloody mess! Why aren't we unlinked with this witch already, Elijah?”

“Rebekah, let her do what she can.”

“I may know a way to slow the fever down. But, I'm gonna need some special herbs.” Sophie looked at Rebekah. “I'll text you a list.”

Rebekah looked at Elijah. He nodded in encouragement. She didn’t seem pleased that she was being ordered around again, but they really didn’t have any other choice now. SHe smiled patronizingly.

“Fine. Happy to play the fetch girl.”

She stomped out of the room, throwing the washcloth at Azariah as she left. Elijah moved to the other side of Hayley. She was breathing quickly. The fever was progressing just as quickly as Sophie said it would. Azariah pressed the cloth to Hayley’s forehead, whispering a few words of what she hoped were encouragement. Hayley turned her head to the side, locking eyes with Riah. She looked scared. Riah put a hand on her cheek. She ignored the heat coming off of Hayley, as worrying as it was. In her time as a human, a fever like that meant death. Things were different now. Davina was working on the unlinking spell and she was a powerful young witch. It would work. It had to.

Sophie told them to bring Hayley out to the pool. With a little bit of help, Hayley was on her feet. Elijah wrapped a towel around her shoulders. Hayley leaned heavily against Azariah as she helped her to the edge of the pool. She laid down in one of the lounge chairs. They waited for Rebekah. Azariah tried her best to keep Hayley’s mind off of the fever but nothing was working. Her fever was just rising and she was starting to get more than just uncomfortable from it. Azariah looked at Elijah. He was pacing, biting down on one of his nails. Sophie was the only one that was patient.

Rebekah ran out to find them, herbs in hand. She handed them to Sophie and she got to work sorting them with the help of Elijah. Rebekah and Azariah stayed by Hayley. Riah checked Hayley’s temperature again and shook her head.

“We have to do this now! She’s burning up.”

Azariah tossed her jacket to the side and rolled up her sleeves. Sophie nodded and gestured to the pool.

“Get her in the water,” she said.

Azariah helped Hayley stand and into the pool. It was cold. Hayley let out a little sigh of relief. Sophie continued mixing the herbs into a cup before she jumped into the pool, too. Rebekah rolled her eyes.

“I don't see how a midnight swim is supposed to help,” she sighed in frustration.

“Her temperature is sky-high,” Sophie explained. “The water, with the help of the herbs, should cool us down.” She handed Hayley the concoction. “Drink this!” She looked at Azariah. “You're going to have to get her heart rate down.”

“Oh really? And how might I do that?” she scoffed.

“Hold her. It's a natural human remedy to slow the heart rate and reduce blood pressure.”

Azariah picked up Hayley, holding her close to her chest. Hayley was still burning. Riah brushed a hand over her hair.

“Look at me, Hayley,” she said softly. “Remember what I told you? About Finn and the blueberries?” Hayley nodded. “Even when I forgot everything, I still held a fondness for them. Wherever we went in the world, I’d always look for blueberries and I never knew why.”

The more that Azariah talked to her, the more that Hayley calmed down. She clung to Azariah like she was a lifeline, even as she gasped for breath. The link would be broken soon. It had to be. Azariah didn’t take her eyes off of Hayley’s face as she spoke. Sophie looked at them nervously.

“I- I can’t breathe!” Hayley called out.

“Shh, long, deep breaths, Hayley. Look at me. Focus on the sound of my voice,” Riah said. Hayley had tears in her eyes. “It was my brother, Erik, who found the blueberry bushes first. He brought them to me and Rebekah and he was so excited. If he hadn’t been exploring where he wasn’t supposed to, we never would have known they were there.”

Hayley continued to struggle to stay calm. She thrashed out in pain, yelling. Azariah held onto her. She was going to be okay. Sophie gasped, looking up at the sky. Hayley continued to groan in pain. Sophie held out her hands, looking at her palms in disbelief.

“I just felt it lift,” her voice was barely above a whisper.

Rebekah sighed in relief. Hayley calmed down. Azariah slowly set her on her own two feet. Hayley continued to lean against Riah. She pressed a kiss to the werewolf’s head and told her that she was okay. Sophie took out one of her earrings and poked her hand. A small droplet of blood formed. Hayley looked at her palm. Nothing. Azariah let out a sigh of relief. It had worked. She helped Hayley towards the stairs and out of the pool. Rebekah handed them both a towel. Riah started to dry out her hair. Sophie looked at Elijah in desperation.

“Elijah... as soon as your brother finds out that the link is broken, he'll kill Agnes. I know you don't owe me anything, but please, don't let him kill her.”

He ignored her, taking his phone out of his jacket pocket.

“Elijah! She's our only access to the power we need to survive. Promise me that you'll stop him!”

He continued to ignore her and dialed a number. He held the phone to his ear.

“It's me, where are you?” He nodded at the person’s response. “Don't hurt her. I'll be there shortly.” He hung up the phone and looked at Sophie still in the pool. “I'll make you one last promise. I won't let my brother kill Agnes.”

Sophie nodded gratefully. Azariah toweled off the rest of her hair and looked down at Sophie. She took a step to the edge of the water.

“I suggest you leave before we return.”

She turned and walked into the house. She shivered a little as the air conditioning touched her wet skin. She headed upstairs and changed her clothes. She looked at Elijah. He was leaning against the door frame. He held out her jacket for her.

“Thank you for your help today, Riah,” he said.

“Don’t thank me yet. I think I might make you break your word. I’m not letting Agnes leave that church alive.”

“I’m not expecting you to. I only promised _Klaus_ wouldn’t hurt her. You, my love,” Elijah ran a hand across her cheek, “can do whatever you’d like.”

“A gift for me? How kind of you, Mr. Mikaelson. Let’s go.”

Rebekah was pacing outside their door when Azariah opened it. She smiled at them. It was a little sad. 

“The unlinking worked! Maybe now we can make plans--” She started.

Azariah put her hands on Rebekah’s shoulder sympathetically. “I’m sorry, Rebekah, not now. Can we talk about this later? We won’t be but a minute.”

She sighed in frustration. “I won't be here when you return.”

Elijah and Azariah shared a glance. Riah knew that Rebekah had been planning to leave once they found Elijah, but she’d grown close with Hayley, too. Riah had hoped that that would be enough to convince her to stay until the child was born. Elijah looked at his sister in disbelief.

“That sounds like a goodbye,” Elijah said sadly.

“I guess it is. I only came to New Orleans to make sure you were safe. You are. I thought that I might be able to convince you to come with me, but here you are, rushing into whatever Klaus and Marcel and the witches have cooked up. And I finally get it.” She tried to hide the tears in her eyes. “You'll never leave this city. You'll never leave Klaus. And Riah, she’ll never leave _you_ , Elijah.”

Elijah took a few steps towards her. “Then you should stay.”

Rebekah shook her head. “This thing that you and Klaus and Marcel have, I want no part of it.” She cried softly. “I just want to be free.”

Elijah kept his own tears silent. “Well, then go.” He kissed her cheek. “You are free,”

Without saying anything else, Elijah left. Azariah pulled Rebekah into a hug. She had never meant to make her feel like she was alone, but Riah supposed that she hadn’t been very good at keeping her company, either. She was always distracted by something else. Riah gently brushed Rebekah’s tears from her cheeks before she followed Elijah. She had been planning on leaving once, too, to look for Erik. It was by sheer chance that he was in New Orleans. That was the real reason she was staying. Of course she wanted to be with Elijah, but she needed to make sure that Erik was safe, too. He was her son. She owed it to him. To herself. To Finn.

The car ride to the church was silent. Neither of them knew what to say. Not after Rebekah told them she was leaving. Azariah looked at Elijah and took his hand. Agnes was going to die. Riah would do it herself. Elijah held her hand tightly. That was all that she needed. He stopped outside the church doors. They shared a glance and headed inside. From the front entrance, they could hear close yelling.

“Don’t. Touch. My. Family!” Klaus yelled.

Elijah and Azariah stepped inside. Klaus had Agnes in a chokehold. Elijah kept his hands in his pockets. The father was there, too, along with a few witches in the pews.

“Leave her,” Elijah said. Klaus pulled her into a headlock and looked at his brother. Azariah and Elijah both started walking down the aisle towards him. “I gave my word.”

The father stood and looked at these two new Original vampires. Klaus looked angry with Elijah. Riah couldn’t blame him. No doubt he wanted nothing more than to snap Agnes’s neck himself. He still wouldn’t say it out loud, but he loved his daughter already. He did. Riah could see it every time that he looked at Hayley’s stomach. He had an unimaginable rage when it came to hurting his family. Unless he was the one hurting them, of course, but that was a different story. He glared at Elijah. Riah crossed her arms.

“You tend to give your word at the most inopportune times, brother,” Klaus growled. “We've been doing things your way all day. Come on! Just one little snap and it's ‘Toodle-loo, Agnes.’ She deserves it! “

“Niklaus, don't make another move. You have asked for my forgiveness. I will grant you that forgiveness, but do not make me break my word.”

Klaus sighed in frustration as he considered the offer. After a beat, he let Agnes go. He opened his arms wide and took a few steps back.

“My noble brother, how was that for personal growth, eh? Still, it is just like you to spoil all of my fun.”

Elijah stared Agnes down. “Oh, not necessarily.”

He nodded at Azariah. They both zoomed over to the men that had helped Agnes. Riah reached into one of their chests and easily ripped out his heart. Elijah did the same to the other two. Agnes held a hand over her mouth in shock. Azariah’s face turned dark. The hearts fell out of Elijah’s hands with a wet sound. Riah stalked towards Agnes. Klaus was grinning proudly. Riah stopped directly in front of Agnes. Carefully, slowly, she licked some of the blood off of her thumb from the man. She let her fangs elongate and she felt the veins move under her eyes.

Agnes watched in horror. Riah hated to admit it, but she loved this part. The sound of Agnes’s heart speeding up. Riah could hear it all. She could smell the fear coming off of her prey. No, Agnes wasn’t prey. That implied that Azariah wanted to feed on her. She didn’t want any blood from this… witch in front of her. That was too good of a death. She held a certain level of respect for most of the people she drank directly from. Elijah took a few steps towards Riah. She grabbed Agnes by the neck and forced her back against the altar. 

“Now, I swore you would not die by my brother's hand,” Elijah said coldly. “I said nothing of hers.”

Azariah shoved her hand through Agnes’s chest. The witch made a sound of shock, fear, and pain, but she was still alive. Riah could feel her heart beating in her hand. She leaned in towards Agnes’s ear.

“You think you have the _right_ to hurt my family?” she asked. “How arrogant of you.” Riah pulled her hand back. Agnes choked as she saw her own heart in Riah’s hand. “Goodbye, Agnes.”

She dropped the organ to the floor and headed towards the door. She gave a small nod of acknowledgement to the priest as she left. Elijah handed her his handkerchief as she passed by him. She wiped the blood off of her hands. She took a deep breath and regained her composure. Her fangs receded. Her eyes returned to normal. She sat in the passenger seat of Elijah’s car. They were going home, finally, and Azariah didn’t have to worry about if Hayley was okay or not. It was a freeing sensation. Her heart tightened as she thought about Rebekah. She wanted her to stay, but she knew that it wasn’t possible. Rebekah needed to live on her own terms. Not on that of her family.

Elijah pulled into the driveway. He hesitated before reaching for the door handle.

“Thank you, Azariah. You have no idea how much your help has meant to me,” he said softly.

“Of course, Elijah.” She put a hand on his cheek.

“If… you want to leave, too, to continue searching for Erik, I… I’ll understand.”

She turned her head to the side with a soft smile. “Oh, Elijah. I’m not leaving. Erik is here.”

“What?”

“He’s in the city. One of Marcel’s men. I’ve been… keeping an eye on him. Trying to find a way to get him out of here.”

“I’ll help you. Now that Hayley’s unlinked, it’s about time I took on another project.”

Riah smiled and shook her head. She pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth and started into the house. She stopped instantly. It was quiet. Too quiet. She thought for sure that Hayley might be in the kitchen or even reading a book somewhere, but she couldn’t hear anything. Elijah started to look around the first floor, calling out her name. RIah did the same on the second. Nothing. She rushed back to the foyer. Elijah was already calling Rebekah. His voice only got more worried the longer he talked to her.

Klaus burst into the house. He looked between Elijah and Azariah.

“Marcel’s been here.”

Azariah’s heart dropped at his words. No. She couldn’t be gone. They had _just_ saved her. How could she be missing? Elijah took Azariah’s hand. She was going to kill him. She was going to kill Marcel Gerard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Hayley/Elijah in this household. But maybe a whisper of Hayley/Azariah as a treat.


	43. Just to Burn: Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's Day! I wish this was a more romantic chapter, lol, but it's not time for that yet. Still waiting for a new g key for my laptop. It's just a blank space that I have to hit very precisely.

They wasted no more time. Marcel had more reason than anyone else to take Hayley. They had thought she’d be safe on her own. Riah was punching herself in her mind. One of them should have stayed the second Rebekah told them that she was leaving town. Just because Davina had managed to unlink Hayley from Sophie didn’t mean Hayley was safe from their enemies. For the first time in… forever, there was potential leverage against Klaus Milkaelson. Of course people would jump at that chance. He’d always been able to rest easy knowing that his family couldn’t be killed. Hayley changed that. His daughter changed that. Marcel was arguably his greatest living enemy. Certainly he was the only one that had reason to take Hayley. Riah cursed under her breath.

Elijah took her hand, intertwining their fingers. He was just as worried as she was. He was just much better at hiding it. Azariah wasn’t used to letting people get close to her. She and Hayley weren’t exactly besties, but she couldn’t deny that she liked having the werewolf around the house. She was family. Of course Riah was worried about her. She wanted to find her sooner rather than later.

They went into the compound. Marcel was putting on some kind of a fight night. He was being rather lax, considering what he had done. The girl in the ring snapped her opponent’s neck with her thighs. Marcel started to applaud her. Riah walked forward and snapped the girl’s neck. She collapsed on the ground. The cheering around them stopped. Klaus and Elijah stepped to either side of her. She looked up at Marcel, standing and leaning against the railing. He didn’t look too pleased to see them all there. Riah really didn’t care about what he wanted. She stepped over the unconscious vampire.

“We haven’t officially met,” she said. With a dramatic bow, she introduced herself. “Azariah, Original vampire.” She looked up, slowly straightening to her full height again. “I think it’s about time you and I have a little chat, Marcel.”

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he growled.

She looked around the circle of vampires and scoffed, holding out her arms. “Well, what does it look like? We’ve come to take back someone that doesn’t belong to you. Give us the girl, or we will kill _everyone_ here.”

“Starting with you,” Elijah promised.

“The three of you have got a lot of nerve,” Marcel said, “coming into _my_ home and making demands.”

 _”Your_ home, is it?” Klaus flashed a fake smile.

 _”The girl!”_ Elijah shouted. “I will not ask again.”

“I assume you're talking about Hayley? Yea high, dark hair, bitchy attitude? Who is she, anyway?”

“She's an old friend. You know how sentimental I am about old friends,” Klaus said.

“Well, I ain't got her. And before you start whining, I did pay her a little visit earlier tonight. I was feeling nostalgic, so I took a trip out to the plantation where I used to be a slave. And, imagine my surprise when I realized that the Original family of vampires had taken up residence. Your girl, Hayley, answered the door, we exchanged hellos, that was it. You don't believe me? Look around. Hell, I'll even help you find her. But the question that I'd ask is: if Hayley isn't here, then where is she?”

Azariah narrowed her eyes. Marcel was awfully arrogant for a vampire that had barely even been alive for 200 years. She wasn’t a big fan of vampires that challenged her these days, courtesy of the Salvatores. She certainly wasn’t a fan of this one. She didn’t see what the big deal around him was. He had all of those vampires wrapped around his finger and fancied himself a king. Riah had known a lot of kings in her days. Most of them had fallen hard and fast. Elijah stopped her from saying anything else with a firm grip on her shoulder. She bit her tongue. She didn’t trust Marcel. She’d just met him after all. Still, if he was offering help, they didn’t have a lot of options.

Klaus nodded. The vampires around them dispersed at Marcel’s word. He walked away from the balcony, promising to return with some kind of help. Klaus and Elijah sat at a table in the corner while they waited for Marcel to come to them. Riah paced, biting her thumb. The longer Hayley was missing, the worse things were going to get for whoever took her. Elijah leaned back in his chair, looking around the courtyard. Most of the fighters were gone, but a few were still milling around. Loitering. She hated this. She hated not knowing. Elijah sighed and looked at Riah. She looked back. He glanced at the chair next to him. She was making him nervous with all of her pacing. With a huff, she sat down. She set her jacket on the chair and crossed her arms. He looked out over the vampires still hanging around.

“Not the most attractive community, are they?” He said, raising an eyebrow.

“You do realize they can hear you?” Klaus sighed.

“You do realize I don't care?”

Finally, after too long, Marcel came back. He was followed by a small group of vampires pulling the witch Sabine along with them. Riah leaned back in her chair with her arms still crossed. He was walking in like he was some kind of a hero for doing the absolute bare minimum. He looked so smug about it, too. These were the kinds of people she hated. Elijah and Klaus leaned forward as Marcel sat down with them.

“You know, Elijah, I liked you better in that box. And you?” Marcel turned to Riah. “I don’t know about you yet. You’ve got spunk. I like that. Sexy.”

“Say anything else and you’ll lose your tongue,” Elijah growled.

Marcel held up his hands and chuckled. “Point taken. Klaus, my sire, you I owe the world, and I always show respect to my elders. If your special lady friend is missing, you could benefit from the help of a witch. And, since I control all the witches in this town, I'll grant you one little locator spell. Sabine's the best guide in the Quarter. Need to find someone? I guarantee, she's your girl.”

He stood and started to leave. Klaus raised an eyebrow.

“Where are you going?” He asked.

“I hate to cut this short, but the sun's coming up soon. My nightwalkers need to get inside, and I have got a city to run. I leave you to track down your lost sheep. “

“Can you find her?” Elijah asked Sabine.

“I can try,” she sighed.

Sabine got to work setting up all of the things that she needed. She took over the small table they had been sitting at. The nightwalkers made their way inside as the sun slowly started to creep over the horizon. Azariah didn’t pay any attention to them. She didn’t care. She just wanted to find Hayley and bring her home again. She probably wasn’t going to let her be alone again. Not after this. It was too much of a risk. The more people that knew she existed, the more danger she would be in.

Sabine waved her hand over the map, chanting softly. It was just like the spell Sophie had done so long ago looking for the dagger in Elijah’s chest. Blood was the catalyst this time. A connection to the child. As she spoke her spell, the blood made a trail across the map, moving from their location towards the bayou. Azariah cocked her head to the side and she followed the trail, walking around the table. The spell stopped and Sabine looked up at them. It was a precise location. Riah wasn’t even sure how close it was.

“She's in the back country. Way up past Houma, deep in the Bayou,” Sabine sighed.

“Can you get any closer?” Riah asked.

Sabine shook her head. Riah sighed heavily. Well, that was going to make this more difficult. Elijah put his hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Riah. We’ll find her.”

“What's the matter, Azariah? Worried splashing about in the bog might dirty your complexion?”

“As a matter of fact, Klaus, it was just the opposite. Elijah?”

“After my recent confinement, I could use a decent stroll through the countryside,” Elijah said.

Klaus scoffed lightly, clearly not happy that he was constantly being reminded of his most recent transgression against his family. If that was all that it took to make him unhappy, she’d love to make him a list that went all the way back to when they were first vampires. She could remember it all.

“There are stories of exiled werewolves, encampments. If Hayley went out that far, chances are she went to find them,” Sabine explained.

“Clearly, she hopes to make the acquaintance of more like herself. I suppose our company wasn't good enough for her,” Klaus joked.

Azariah glared at him. She grabbed her jacket and started towards the car. She had the keys. She’d leave with or without both of them and look for Hayley by herself if she had to. Elijah was closer behind her than Klaus was. To the bayou it was, then.

****

* * *

****

Azariah slammed her car door. This was the second encampment that they had found and there was still no sign of Hayley. It was getting more and more frustrating. Elijah kept holding onto her to try and keep her grounded. She needed it. She needed to keep herself calm, but she kept thinking that this is what Elijah must have felt when Esther had taken her all that time ago. She couldn’t even imagine what it was like having it happen a second time in a row. No. No, she could. She had to remember that this _was_ the second time that she had lost someone she loved, not really knowing _what_ was happening to them. She had felt this way when Erik had first gone missing, too. Freaking out hadn’t helped her then and it wasn’t going to help her now, either.

She took a deep breath and focused on keeping her heart rate down. Once she did that, she was able to see things a little more clearly. She could smell better, even. Elijah looked around.

“We should head south towards the water,” he said.

““You seem quite determined to find the little wolf,” Klaus quipped.

“If I'm moving too fast for you, Niklaus, you're welcome to wait in the car. I’ll be certain to leave the windows down.”

“Ah, so I've touched a nerve? You've begun to admire this girl. Perhaps that's why you've been barking orders since your return, hoping to impress Hayley by assuming the role of family patriarch.”

“Oh, can it, Klaus,” Riah sighed. “You’re the one treating her like she’s nothing more than an incubator. She’s a _person_ , and more importantly, the _mother of your child_. Try to show a little more concern about her.”

Klaus opened his mouth to say something back, but stopped immediately. He started sniffing at the air. All signs of the impending argument between the three of them subsided as potential signs of Hayley came about. Elijah took a step towards his brother. Klaus walked further down the path, away from them.

“Have you found her scent?”

Klaus stopped in front of an SUV. It looked ancient. Beat up. Riah was surprised that the thing had even made it this far into the bayou without breaking down entirely. Klaus pulled open the back window and started sorting through various items. The scent was somewhat familiar to Riah. It was more like a ghost of a scent. She couldn’t place the owner. Klaus was angrily ripping through it. He groaned.

“No, but I found someone else's. This vehicle reeks of someone I thought I was rid of... Tyler Lockwood.”

Azariah sighed. “And why would your only living hybrid from Mystic Falls care about Hayley, exactly?”

“He wants revenge because I went after his girl,”

“Caroline?”

“That’s the one.”

“Why do I suspect this is the least of your offenses?” Elijah huffed.

“Back when I had the means to sire hybrids, he was my first, Although, I didn't give him much choice in the matter.” He pulled out a blanket, sniffing it. He grimaced and tossed it to the ground. “He was loyal in the beginning, but he grew insubordinate, turned my other hybrids against me. I couldn't have that, so I massacred the lot of them. Tyler ran like a coward before I could finish him off.”

“Oh, is that all?” Riah scoffed.

“Well, there was this business with his mum…”

“You killed his mother. Wonderful.”

Azariah pinched the bridge of her nose. It was no wonder that Klaus had so many enemies. He did everything in his power to make them. And now someone else was going to pay the price for it. He truly had no concept of what the consequences of his actions might have been. Oh, if Azariah could have just for a second given him the treatment he had given her over the centuries… She wasn’t even surprised that he had killed Tyler’s mother. She was shocked Tyler wasn’t working with people like Katherine. Or even Caroline and the others from Mystic Falls. He had certainly done enough to warrant this from them, too. She threw her hands into the air in frustration. She truly didn’t know what else to do.

“He needed to be taught a lesson!” Klaus shrugged.

“And how is that going for you, _Nik_ , hm? Tell me, because I’d love to hear how you justify your actions now! How about to Hayley, if she’s alive to hear them?”

“So you do care about her. Well, go on, then. Have at it, _sister_. Save her. Claim what spoils you can. I've sampled what she has to offer and let me tell you, she is exquisite-”

Azariah rushed at him. She grabbed his neck and pushed him back against a tree. A broken branch impaled him through his chest. He yelled out in pain. He tried to fight back. She broke another branch, preparing to shove it through his heart. She knew it wouldn’t do anything, but at least it would hurt. He deserved it. Gods knew that he had done it to the rest of them enough times. What was a small taste of his own medicine? All semblance of calm she’d tried to accumulate was gone. Elijah grabbed her arm.

“Enough!” he shouted. 

He pulled her off of Klaus. Klaus straightened his jacket and glared at her. She took deep breaths. It wasn’t working a second time.

“I'll kill Tyler Lockwood myself.”

He rushed off using his vampire speed. Riah shouted curses after him. She tossed her makeshift stake to the ground. No one could get under her skin quite like Klaus could. She kicked the underbrush of the forest in frustration. She started to trudge through, following Klaus’s scent. Elijah followed a little more slowly. He seemed lost in thought. Maybe he was just angry that Riah had threatened Klaus. She couldn’t be certain. She wasn’t sure that she even wanted the answer in the first place. It wasn’t necessarily going to be something that she wanted to hear. Not after what Klaus had implied.

She stopped and let Elijah catch up to her. He hesitated for a moment. She turned to face him.

“Penny for your thoughts?” she asked softly. “Is what Klaus said about Hayley and me bothering you so much?”

Elijah gave a small smile. “More than I thought it would. You and she grew… close while I was gone.”

“You do realise I’m not in love with her, right?”

“Of course.”

“I just… understand her, I guess. Being pregnant and feeling like the whole world is against you. Besides, she’s bright. Cunning, even, and so much more… kind. Kinder than anyone in _this_ family deserves. I’ve even seen her be civil to Klaus, which we both know _he_ -” she stopped speaking. She heard a scream. She knew it. “Did you hear that? It’s Hayley!”

Azariah didn’t hesitate to run in the direction of the scream. Elijah was close behind her. Hayley was in danger, but at least she was close. They had found her. Riah turned to look behind a tree and was greeted with a knife in her face. She grabbed her attacker’s arm and smirked when she saw Hayley. Hayley looked relieved. She dove into Riah’s arms. Riah closed her eyes and held Hayley close. She was safe and from what Riah could see, no worse for wear. She gently brushed the hair at the back of Hayley’s head with her fingers.

“I’m so glad you’re safe. I was worried about you!” Riah said.

“You would not _believe_ the crap day I’m having,” Hayley chuckled softly, keeping the tears behind her eyes.

Hayley pulled away from the hug. Riah checked her over just to make herself feel better. No scratches. No dried blood. She was safe. Really. Maybe a little dirty, but she had been in the bayou all day. That was to be expected. Elijah pulled Hayley into a hug next. 

“C’mon,” Riah said. “Let’s get you home and into a shower, yeah?”

She started to leave.

“Wait. There’s something you need to know about the baby.”

Riah turned curiously. Hayley explained what had happened. Tyler and another werewolf, Dwayne, had figured out that the baby could be used to make more hybrids. It worked. Dwayne was a hybrid. For a short time, anyway, before Tyler killed him. Elijah paced anxiously. Azariah held a hand over her mouth as she thought it over. More hybrids. That was the absolute last thing that this world needed. Especially if Klaus knew. No. Riah couldn’t think like that. She knew Klaus was horrible, but surely even _he_ wouldn’t force his child to be the catalyst of a hybrid revolution. Would he? He was a lot of things. A lot of bad things. Who was to say if he would or not? Hayley sat against a tree as she spoke. She was so sure of it.

“Klaus must have known, that's the only explanation! He could care less about the baby. He just wants her to be born so he can use her to make more sired hybrids.”

Hayley looked at the two of them. Elijah looked away first. Hayley looked at her hands.

“Although... the way that Dwayne was acting... it was more like he was sired to me.”

Elijah sighed. “We should take you home.”

“Are you serious? Home to what?”

“Look, regardless of my brother's intentions, mine remain the same. I said that I would protect you, even, if need be, from Klaus himself.”

“Can we stop talking about it as if this is _absolutely_ what he wants?” Riah asked.

She was shocked that she was coming to Klaus’s defense of all people. Elijah was, too. Hayley shook her head.

“Why else would he keep me around?”

“Because he wants to be a father, perhaps? Look, I have a son, Hayley. I know how having a child can change a person.”

“Oh, really? And how is that?”

Azariah looked at Elijah and guiltily at the ground. She didn’t know how she was supposed to say this or explain it without hurting him. 

“Elijah, I have been in love with you since I was ten years old,” she began, “and I always thought that the worst thing I could have done to you is marry your brother. And then I got pregnant and it got worse. I did something worse. Because I wasn’t just Finn’s wife. I… I loved him. A part of me, some human part, still does and always did. Even after my memories were taken from me, there was a piece missing. Not even you, my love, could have filled it because it was meant for my family.”

Elijah ran a hand down his face in disbelief. Riah took another breath.

“Believe me when I say that parenthood changes you. I don’t think this is something Klaus would do, and Hayley, you have to believe that, too.”

“Whatever. I can take care of myself. I've done it for a long time,” Hayley scoffed.

She stood and stormed away. After a beat and a shared glance, Elijah and Riah followed her. Riah really didn’t think that Klaus wanted to use the child to create more hybrids. It would make him too similar to Mikael if he just used her to get what he wanted. He at least had some standards. Sometimes. Between Riah’s confession and Klaus’s accusations, Riah was surprised that Elijah was even staying close to her. She wouldn’t have blamed him for running to be next to Hayley instead. But he stayed next to her. He even took her hand again. She would never understand how he just… forgave her words like that. He did it with them all. If any one of the Mikaelsons truly understood unconditional love, it was Elijah.

Riah wasn’t sure what she had done to deserve someone like him. What kind of good deeds had she done? She was grateful. More than he would ever know.

“I love you, Elijah,” she whispered.

The corner of his mouth twitched. “I know. And I love you, Riah. I’m not angry that you loved Finn. I hope you know that. It does make Sage a worse situation.”

Riah shrugged. “Not really. Neither of us remembered loving the other. And it was for the best.” She leaned up and kissed Elijah’s cheek. “Because you and I never would have been together if it weren’t for her.”

“Well, never is a long time. Especially for a vampire”

“You know I’m right. We both would have felt guilty about it.”

“Well, we can’t change the past regardless. Let’s focus on keeping Hayley safe first, shall we?”

“I love that plan.”

She gently leaned against his shoulder for a moment while they walked. Hayley wouldn’t even glance their way. She was angry that Riahhadn’t just taken her side of this. Azariah could, of course, understand this. Since they’d met, Riah had been very open about her distrust and general dislike of Klaus Mikaelson. Even Riah herself was surprised at how quickly she had come to his defense in this matter. In this one instance, she wanted to believe in the better side of him. That was Elijah’s hope for this child too, wasn’t it?

Hayley marched right back to where she had been kept hostage. Riah assumed that she wanted to prove that the new hybrid was real. Riah didn’t doubt the existence of the hybrid and how they could be made again. She just doubted that Klaus only wanted the child to sire more hybrids for his army. She didn’t understand why Elijah and Hayley were so willing to take the word of Tyler Lockwood. The kid had been far too forthcoming with information and it seemed fairly obvious that he would say anything that he needed to in order to turn others against Klaus. He wasn’t a reliable source of information. Not when it came to Niklaus.

They reached the house. Klaus was standing by the door. He had his foot on a body and he looked pissed off. As Elijah, Riah, and Hayley came into view, he kicked the body over. There was a huge hole in his chest where his heart used to be. The veins under his eyes were still there and he was slowly decaying into a gray shade. A hybrid. Just like Hayley had said. All three of them stopped walking. Elijah looked genuinely shocked. A brand new hybrid.

“There you are! I see you found our wandering stray,” Klaus held out his arms wide. “Perhaps you could shed some light on the situation. This,” he gestured to the body, “would appear to be a hybrid.”

“His name was Dwayne,” Hayley said angrily.

“Well, whoever it was, I didn’t sire him. Any idea how that’s possible?”

“Like you don’t already know!”

Hayley started to storm towards him. Azariah stopped her. She ripped her arm out of Riah’s grasp. Elijah stood between them. Riah sighed in frustration. This wasn’t going to get them anywhere. She just needed Hayley to trust her on this.

“Trouble in paradise?” Klaus was clearly unamused by all of this. “Oh, come on, then. What horrible accusation have you conspired to levy against me?”

“Tyler Lockwood brought Hayley here to test a theory,” Elijah began. “That the blood of her child could be used to sire hybrids. He claims that you knew that. Furthermore, that you intended to use this knowledge to build an army.”

Klaus looked away to hide the hurt in his eyes. Riah knew then that _she_ was right. Klaus had no knowledge of what this child’s blood was capable of. Even if he had, he wouldn’t have seemed so upset by the idea that that was what he wanted this child to do. Azariah started to move past Elijah.

“Klaus-”

“And of course!” He yelled. “You assume it’s true. I mean, why else would I show interest in my own flesh and blood? A heartbroken little crybaby points his finger at me and my own family falls in line, eager to believe it. How quickly you believe the worst, especially when it comes to _her_.”

“Oh, spare me your indignation. When have you demonstrated any kind of concern for Hayley or her child, beyond your own selfish pursuits? And what was it you once said to me?” Elijah impersonated Klaus. _”’Every king needs an heir’!”_

“My big brother. So, you doubt my intentions? Well, I can’t say I’m surprised. Standing next to the noble Elijah, how can I be anything but the _lesser_ brother? A liar. A manipulator. A _bastard.”_

Klaus stepped to approach Elijah. Azariah moved in front of him and put her hand on Klaus’s chest, stopping him in his tracks. She met his gaze easily.

“Klaus, please.” She said. “You’re both in the wrong here. Elijah shouldn’t have accused you. But he has a point. It’s not like you’ve tried to get to know Hayley at all. I’m not saying that means I believe Tyler Lockwood of all people. Please.”

He looked at her in shock. They all did. Azariah should have been the last person on Earth that was trying to reason with Klaus. She was shocked herself. She kept a hand on Klaus’s chest. She could see it in his eyes. The thing that Elijah had talked about for so long. The want to have this child. And now, he _wanted_ to listen to her and trust she was telling him the truth. She just wanted to go home so they could talk about all of this calmly. He glanced at Hayley and Elijah. Elijah had relaxed his stance slightly but he was still defensive. Hayley’s eyes were filled with hatred. She really thought there was only one reason Klaus wanted this child to be born. Riah could see Klaus’s thoughts flash through his eyes. Anger. Hurt. Sadness. Right back to anger. He backed away from Riah, shaking his head. Riah held her ground between him and the others.

“That’s all, then? What I am to the rest of you. A bastard. To Rebekah. And, judging from the look on her face and the way she hangs on to your every word, to Hayley as well. Is that what I shall become to my child, as well?” His sadness filled his face. “Azaiah, the person who holds no familial bond to me, no blood, is the only one to stand by my side.”

“Brother, if-”

“You’ve said all that needs to be said, _brother_.” Klaus held out his arms in defeat. “I’ll play the role I’ve been given.”

He walked away. Riah started to move towards him. She didn’t know if it was to comfort him or to stop him. She didn’t get the chance to think it over. Klaus rushed past her to Elijah. He savagely bit into his older brother’s neck, tearing a small chunk of his flesh before backing away. Hayley screamed in horror. Riah ran to Elijah as he stumbled to the ground. She pulled him close. Klaus wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

“Enjoy each other’s company. You’ll have much to bond over, once the hallucinations and dementia set in. Azariah?”

Klaus extended his hand to her. Riah stood and walked over to him slowly. She slapped him. The sound echoed across the bayou. He had an angry red mark on his cheek that was already starting to bruise and fade away. Tears stung the back of her eyes. She’d trusted him. For one stupid second she had let her guard down and she had trusted him. She knew better. This was what Klaus always did. Klaus stared at the ground in shock. He regained his composure quickly. For a moment, Riah thought that he might bite her, too. Instead, he stood tall.

“Fine. Consider that bite my parting gift to you all, then.”

He stormed off into the bayou. Azariah went back to Elijah and helped him to his feet. She moved his hand away from the wound. Klaus had done a number on him, that was certain. She leaned her forehead against his shoulder for a moment. This was partially her fault. Mostly Klaus’s and even a little bit Elijah’s, but partially her. She was used to being the one to stop Klaus before he could hurt any of them. She hadn’t been expecting this. She thought she’d somehow gotten through to him.

****

* * *

****

Elijah took Riah’s hand and kissed her palm. He was always putting others before him. Here he was, werewolf venom coursing through his veins, and he was comforting her. She brushed his hair back and started to clean the blood with the handkerchief from his jacket. His kindness and Riah’s guilt were only two of the reasons that they were still in the bayou rather than speeding back to the plantation before the bite’s full effects kicked in, helping Hayley look through the old shack for any clues about her family. That was why she was in New Orleans, after all.

“You don't have to help. I can dig through the werewolf antique show on my own. Besides,” Haylet looked at Elijah’s neck. It was starting to fester already, “shouldn't you put some kind of ointment or something on that?”

“The bite won't kill me. Like Niklaus himself, it's more than a nuisance than anything.” Elijah flashed a small smile.

“Good, 'cause I'm eventually going to need a ride home. And thanks, for staying. You don’t have to.”

“I know, but you said the people of this village are the only family you have left. I can relate.”

“You're thinking about Klaus.”

“Perhaps I was too willing to condemn him,” Elijah sighed.

“You were. Both of you,” Riah said, shaking her head. “Elijah, we’ve lived for a thousand years. Klaus has done horrible things. You and I are no different. Every member of our family has done horrible things. Well, except for Finn, perhaps, but he was in a box for most of his life.”

“We've all done bad things.” Hayley said. She took Azariah’s hand. “It's just, most people die before the list gets embarrassing. But, don't for a second compare yourselves to Klaus. It’s… admirable, I guess, to want to believe in him.”

Azariah glanced at Elijah and sighed. “Yes, well, look where that got us. Sorry to have you dragged into this, Hayley. Mikaelson family quarrels are notoriously… deadly.”

Hayley chuckled a little. She met Azariah’s eyes. Riah hadn’t noticed how much taller she actually was than Hayley. Or the way the light made her eyes glow. They looked like pools of honey here. Hayley looked away first. She waved the collar of her shirt like a fan.

“It's like a freaking hot-box in here, I'm gonna get some air.”

Hayley went outside to get some air, leaving Riah and Elijah alone. Azariah moved the collar of his shirt away from his wound. She had to undo a couple of buttons to get it to stay off. It could at least make him a little more comfortable. She’d had to go through the same thing recently, after all. She bit her lip and shook her head, looking at the ground. Elijah put a hand under her chin and made her look at me.

“This isn’t your doing, Azariah. Niklaus is simply lashing out as he always does,” Elijah assured her.

“That doesn’t make it okay, Elijah. Now that he can’t just stick us in boxes whenever he wants, he bites us instead. You know, he did the same exact thing to me practically the first night I was in New Orleans. Because I stopped him from strangling Hayley.”

Elijah narrowed his eyes. “And yet you still defended him today.”

“Yes, I took a page out of your Klaus handbook. And it seems _you_ took one out of _mine_. We’ve switched.”

She kissed his cheek and headed outside. Hayley was standing at the edge of the porch, flipping through a book that Riah was certain hadn’t been there before. Elijah stood on one side, looking over Hayley’s shoulder.

“Someone left this here,” Hayley said.

“What is it?”

“A Bible, with a family history that goes back generations.”

Hayley flipped through the pages. The names and dates went back almost a full century. The last was from 1991. Andrea Labonair. June 6th. 

“What are these names? Who is Andrea?” Elijah shook his head.

“I think I am... That's the day that I was born.”

Riah and Hayley shared a glance. Was that bible the key to everything she’d come to New Orleans for? Had they really found a connection to her family in this dingy shack? Who’d put it there for them to find? There were more questions than answers. With Elijah’s bite, they were running out of time to find them.


	44. Just to Burn: Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is taking me much longer to write these chapters than usual ;-; There are so many character things I've been trying to get right and the snowstorm that hit my state had no mercy on the power. I hope you all are staying safe out there!

Elijah laid on the bed, tossing and turning. He was restless. The venom was starting to kick in. Riah gently brushed his hair away from his face. She hated seeing him like this. Elijah opened his eyes for a moment and smiled at her, like he was trying to tell her that he was fine. Of course she knew that he wasn’t, regardless. He’d just keep pretending like he was until the delusions and hallucinations took root. He didn’t want anyone to worry about him. It was in his nature. Unfortunately for him, it was in Azariah’s nature to take care of him. Especially when he was this clearly sick. 

All of this because of one accusation. Riah regretted being on Klaus’s side now more than ever. There was a first and last time for everything, she supposed. She ran a hand across Elijah’s cheek. He caught her wrist and kissed her palm. A romantic, even when he was sick like this. 

“Do you see, now, what trusting your brother gets us? I’ll certainly never do it again,” Riah joked.

Elijah gave her a look. He knew she was right but in the end, it wouldn’t change anything. He and Klaus would be angry with each other for another month, tops, and then they would go back to being thick as thieves, just like they always were. Riah would just have to do a better job of keeping Klaus in check. Hayley came over with a small glass of water. She offered it to Elijah. Both he and Riah looked at it skeptically but he drank it anyway. Almost immediately, he gagged and choked, coughing it up. Azariah wiped the water from his chin, looking at Hayley apologetically. She moved a little ways away from them.

“Forgive me,” Elijah coughed. “Please.”

“Sorry, Hayley,” Riah sighed. “I don’t think he’ll be keeping down anything besides… well…”

Hayley nodded in understanding. They were vampires. Things like water and food didn’t matter. Not really. It all came down to one thing: blood. It always was brought down to it. Hayley looked at her wrist. 

“Elijah, you should-”

“No!” Riah and Elijah said together.

“No. I wouldn’t dream of… _feeding_ from you. Not while you’re pregnant.” Elijah shook his head.

Riah took a deep breath. There was always another option. It was less appealing while Hayley was around, but Elijah was going to need blood to ride this out. He was going to have to drink from Riah. It was just… intimate. Hayley was a werewolf. It wasn’t like she was going to understand why, not even if Riah did her best to explain it. Azariah sighed and bit down on her wrist. Elijah looked a little shocked, to say the least, but his hunger won out. Much quicker than usual. She held her hand to his mouth and his fangs sunk in. She groaned a little at the sting. Riah avoided making eye contact with Hayley while Elijah fed from her. She didn’t want Hayley to see the blush that was forming on her cheeks.

Azariah pulled her hand away from Elijah. He followed her movements, his eyes still red with hunger. Just another bad effect from the venom. It was a renewed, reinforced hunger that took over the mind completely. Elijah probably would have kept feeding until Riah was desiccated if she hadn’t stopped him. That was how bad it could get. She wiped the extra blood from his mouth and stood. Elijah laid back in the bed. He looked a little less pale than he had before. Both he and Azariah were avoiding looking at Hayley. It wasn’t exactly… normal to do something like that in front of someone else. Hayley looked at them curiously. She had no idea why they were acting stranger than usual.

“Blood sharing,” Riah said softly. “It’s an intimate thing between vampires. Or even vampires and humans, sometimes, but that’s more dependent on the relationship. For the most part, we try to avoid, well, other people seeing it. But he needed, _needs_ , blood. So, if you could just not bring it up once you’re back at the house, that would be preferable.” Azariah held out the car keys for her to take.

“What do you mean, back at the house? I’m not going anywhere,” Hayley scoffed.

“Yes, you are. You need to leave. This isn’t some cold or flu that you can help with.”

“I’m not leaving you two alone out here.”

“Hayley, please, we can-”

“No.”

There it was. The stubbornness that Azariah had liked so much about Hayley when they had first met coming back to haunt her already. She knew that there was no way for either of them to actually force her to leave. Elijah was in no shape to even _move_ and Riah would never leave him alone in that condition. Hayley wasn’t going to leave of her own volition. Riah looked back at Elijah. He wouldn’t like that Hayley was still there when he woke up, but it really seemed that Riah’s hands were tied. She sighed. Hayley smiled, knowing that she had won. She picked up the bible and stepped out of the shack, standing by the water’s edge.

Azariah went back to the edge of Elijah’s temporary bed and sat down next to him. He was sweating. The blood she had given him was already starting to leave his system as his body fought against the venom. She hated seeing him like this. She hadn’t seen someone she cared about sick for a very, very long time. She wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to do to make him feel better other than just stay there. He groaned in pain. Azariah took his hand in her own, bringing his knuckles to her lips. Hayley rushed back into the shack. She put her hand on Elijah’s forehead, checking his temperature. Riah reached to brush his hair back. As her fingertips touched his skin, her mind was overtaken by Elijah’s.

_**996** _

Elijah sat back against the tree. He brought his knees to his chest. He could hear the merriment in the village all around him. They were celebrating her wedding. He wondered if she would join in with it all. He glanced over towards the great White Oak. She was sitting quietly with Finn by her side. She smiled out of obligation when people came to congratulate her. Finn kept a stoic expression. It should have been _him_ with her up there. It should have been _his_ ring on her finger. She caught his gaze. Just for an instant. He stood and walked away. He wouldn’t subject himself to this torture.

_**2011** _

Azariah shook her head. Hayley stepped away from Elijah in shock. Elijah’s eyes shot open. He looked at Riah, glancing around like he had forgotten where they were. He pulled his hand away from her suddenly. He was still stuck in his mind. As far as he knew, Riah was married to Finn and he wanted nothing to do with her.

“Azariah? Why are you here? Where’s Finn?” he asked. “Leave me. Please.”

“It’s okay, Elijah,” Riah spoke softly. Her voice was barely above a whisper. It was as loud as she could manage without her voice shaking. “That was just a memory, my love. Come back to me.”

Elijah’s eyes widened as he realised what had happened. He looked away from Azariah. She gently pulled his head into her lap so she could run her fingers through his hair. He let out a sigh of relief. He closed his eyes. She leaned down and kissed his forehead. He moved towards her touch. They were back in the present and they were together. He could rest easy. At least for now. She rested her forehead against Elijah’s. He was radiating heat in his sickness. Hayley was still in shock. She had shared memories with Elijah in the past. Riah knew that. It had just always been consensual and Elijah could control what she saw. This was different. He had no idea what he was doing. 

“So, that was Finn. He was kinda hot,” Hayley joked.

Riah didn’t laugh. She was too worried about Elijah. “Yes. That, what we just saw, was the celebration of my wedding. I had hardly seen Elijah at all that day. I never knew that he… I assumed he left the village. Then again, Mikael would have called him weak for doing so.” Riah heard a branch break outside. She looked up. “We’re being watched.”

Hayley ran out of the shack to see who, or what, was watching them. Riah brought Elijah close to her again. She couldn’t keep the tears back now that they were alone. She had never known that he had had to watch the whole thing. She couldn’t even imagine how much that had hurt him. Elijah reached up and brushed a tear from her cheek. He looked guilty and apologetic. He knew he was the cause of her tears. It wasn’t his fault. Not really. It had all happened so long ago. Azariah smiled at him. She hoped that it was reassuring. She was fine. Really. She was. She just hadn’t been expecting to relive that part of their shared past today. Slowly, Elijah started to drift back into his restless sleep.

Hayley called out to someone. Riah looked away from Elijah as Hayley came back into the shack. Instantly, Hayley noticed her tears. She sat next to Riah.

“What’s wrong? Is it Elijah? Is he-”

“No, it’s not that. He’s fine. Well, as fine as he can be in this condition. It’s the memory. I’ve said I’ve been in love with Elijah since I was ten. That’s not an exaggeration. I truly thought that we’d be together until the end of our days. I was naive, of course. And he loved me. It simply wasn’t meant to be. Not while we were still human.”

“Hold on. If you loved him and he loved you, then why did you marry Finn?”

“It was arranged by Esther and Mikael. Esther’s mentor, Ayana, had some vision of blood and chaos and death if Elijah and I were together. So they had me marry Finn, instead.”

“You didn’t protest?”

“Of course I did. It just came to nothing.” Riah looked down at Elijah. “We didn’t talk to each other for almost four years. He was my best friend back then and I lost him. He lost me, too. That’s what this is all about,” she gestured to her tears. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “Did you see who was watching us?”

“No,” Hayley sighed. “Whoever it was, they ran away as soon as I saw them. I didn’t want to leave you two alone in here. I’m glad I didn’t.”

Hayley gently took Riah’s hand with a sympathetic smile. Riah appreciated it. She needed someone else that was conscious with her for this. If Elijah was going to keep his mind open for this whole experience, she was going to need it even more. Elijah shifted, turning his head from side to side as whatever hallucination he was fighting came to the surface.

_**1114** _

Azariah passed by Elijah while he finished signing the document. She was wearing the blue dress that he had come to love so. Her hair was braided in a matching ribbon. Blue was quickly becoming his favourite colour. He followed her with his eyes as she made her way towards the bookshelf, gently running her fingers across the spines. Niklaus said something to Elijah, but he was hardly paying attention. How could he when perfection was in the same room, taunting him? She moved to stand by the window, pushing it open to let a soft breeze in. She smiled back at him deviously. She knew exactly what she was doing to him. That little devil. Azariah walked to Niklaus and leaned over his shoulder.

“You know, brother, you should add gold to the page. It will add more… importance to your sun and moon curse,” she said.

Niklaus nodded. “You have an eye for forgery, my darling sister. Whatever would I do without you here?”

“Well, Nik, I imagine you would fail in all of your endeavours and be eternally miserable.” 

Azariah kissed his cheek and left the room. Elijah tried his best to keep his eyes glued to the paper in front of him. It was increasingly difficult once he caught her scent passing by him. He broke the nib of his pen. The cracking sound broke him from his trance. Niklaus looked at him with a little concern, but it was more for the paper being ruined than Elijah himself. 

“Brother?”

“Excuse me, Niklaus. I need to step away for a moment. We’ve been at these for hours now. My head is practically swimming.”

Elijah gave a small bow and left the room. He made sure that the heavy doors were closed behind him. He turned the corner of the hallway, hoping to find Azariah before she disappeared. He found himself being pulled behind one of the pillars nearby. Riah kissed him passionately. Elijah quickly pushed her back against the pillar across the way. The taste of her was more intoxicating than the finest wines. He ran his hands up her sides, resting back at her hips. The past month had been filled with these stolen moments. Their nights were almost always together. Elijah still wanted to snap Finn’s neck for hurting Riah as he had. Elijah couldn’t deny that he was grateful to his brother in a weird way, too. He sucked in a breath as he pulled away from her. She looked up at him curiously, green eyes filled with concern.

“You wore that dress on purpose,” Elijah growled.

“Well, of course I did. We have a meeting with- ah!” 

Elijah kissed her neck. He bit down hard enough to leave a mark. Not that it would stay for more than a few seconds. A part of him wished that it wouldn’t leave so quickly. He wanted Finn to know that Riah didn’t miss him in the slightest. His hand started to slide up her stomach. Every touch drove him wild. She leaned her head back against the pillar and let out the softest moan. Elijah longed to tear that dress from her skin and-

**_2011_ **

Azariah coughed loudly, bringing them all out of the trance. She remembered that day well. It hadn’t ended in that hallway. Or even for the rest of the day. They certainly didn’t need to be showing all of that to Hayley. Elijah shivered and groaned quietly.

“You know, Elijah, it’s rude to kiss a lady and tell,” Riah joked.

He didn’t think it was funny. He turned to Hayley.

“Hayley, please. This fever. My mind is flooded with these torturous memories. You have to leave,” Elijah said.

“What is your deal? You don't like people taking care of you? Or do you just not want anyone to know that Original vampires care, too?”

“There are consequences for those that care. I will not have you pay that price.”

“So, you're having weird, retro sex dreams? Get over it, I'm staying.”

“Hayley, I have this covered. What about our visitor?” Riah said.

“I'm guessing she's the one that left the mystery Bible on the doorstep last night. Would be nice if she'd stick around long enough to tell me why,” Hayley sighed.

“Hayley, you came here to gather information about your family, not to play nursemaid to a vampire with a temperature. Please, find her. Learn what you can,” Elijah turned towards the wall.

“No, I'm staying,” Hayley shook her head.

A wave of pain overtook Elijah. He cried out. Azariah quietly spoke to him in hopes that it would help him calm down or maybe forget some of what he was going through. Maybe bring him to the present again.

**_1492_ **

Elijah stormed back into the castle. He couldn’t believe that Katerina would have left so suddenly. Klaus was beyond angry now. He had lost his chance at being complete. Elijah was just glad that he hadn’t made good on his promise to stick Elijah into a box as retaliation. He had searched for Katerina for days. There was no sign of her beyond Rose Marie. She had turned herself into a vampire. Klaus was headed to Bulgaria as Elijah paced. He wanted revenge against her for this betrayal. A servant walked up to Elijah. He had the usual vacant expression of someone who’d been compelled.

“Master Elijah. This letter is for you,” The man produced an envelope. 

Elijah instantly recognised the seal as Azariah’s. It was sloppy, but it was her symbol. He took the letter and waved the man away. Without a moment’s hesitation, he broke the seal. A small pendant fell out of the envelope into his hand. He knew it well. Azariah had made it for Erik when he was a child. She had hardly ever taken it off since he had died. He hastily unfolded the paper. Azariah’s usually careful handwriting had become a mess. She’d written this letter quickly.

_My dearest Elijah,_

_If this letter is in your possession, then it means that I am already far away from England and you have returned without Katerina._

Elijah scoffed lightly. She was always perceptive. But this… leaving the family… he had never thought it was something that she would do. He read on. She spoke of Klaus becoming a monster like their father. How much it hurt her to see those things and see her family in pain. The torture she had endured in the name of them all.

_Oh, I so wish that I could convince you to leave with me, Elijah. I know that you still see good in Niklaus where I believe there is none. For your continued optimism in your brother, I am envious. I, too, long for the boy I grew up with. I do not think that he exists any longer. This… creature that we are left with is far too paranoid to ever truly be family to me. If you were to come with me, I am certain that I could live a happy life._

Elijah’s heart pounded against his chest. It was begging for him to run after her. If he was lucky, she wouldn’t have gotten too far yet and he’d still be able to find her. But she was right. He couldn’t leave Niklaus, especially not now. It wasn’t the right time. Elijah sat down. He ran a hand across his face. He didn’t know how he was supposed to handle this. First, Katerina, and now Azariah? She had been with him his whole life. She couldn’t simply disappear, could she?

_Please, do not look for me. Send Rebekah my love, and if Kol or Finn shall be awake again, tell them the same._

_Yours, Always and Forever_

_Riah_

**_1935_ **

“Forget about her, my brother,” Klaus said flippantly. He took a sip of his gin. “She left us. We don’t need anyone besides the family.”

“Yes, the family,” Elijah scoffed, “that you so easily keep in coffins. Tell me, why is it that Rebekah is now inside one as we speak? Placed there so quickly after we were forced to flee from our home?”

Klaus shrugged. “It was the only way to keep us all together.”

Elijah threw his hands into the air in frustration. He was finally starting to see what Azariah had meant in her letter. Klaus had no remorse for the things he did to them. In fact, it seemed like he took some kind of perverse joy in it all. That was why she had run away. Elijah had done his best not to think of her as she had asked him. He tried to move forward with his life and he tried to make a life with his family. Without her, it was meaningless. As long as he stayed with Klaus, she would never want to come home to him. He still had to try, didn’t he?

“If you truly wish for us to be together, then why not search for Azariah?”

“Yes, perhaps we will, brother, so I can remind her of the consequences of her actions. She left with no consideration of you or I. It’s very selfish of her. How long has it been now? 400 years? I shall leave a dagger in her heart for as long, don’t you think?”

“You will not _touch her!”_

Elijah grabbed Klaus by the collar and threw him against the wall. Klaus was impaled on the iron spike sticking out. Elijah made no move to help him. Klaus looked at his brother in shock. They had had many quarrels over the years. Elijah was one of the few that had rarely come to blows. The last time had been because of the witch Celeste. He didn’t care. Elijah dusted off his jacket and shook his head. He never asked Klaus for anything. He did everything to keep his little brother happy and satisfied and never did things for himself. Every time that he had, Klaus had destroyed it. Elijah turned and started to walk away. He would find Riah with or without Klaus.

“Fine!” Klaus yelled. “Go and search for the little harlot that abandoned us! She’s the only family that you have left.”

“What are you talking about?”

“After Rebekah’s… transgressions, I’ve realised that family is too much of a burden.”

“Niklaus, if you don’t get to the point-”

“They’re being tossed to the waves as we speak, brother.”

Elijah’s heart dropped. No. No! Not even Klaus would sink so low, would he?

“None of you have ever thought of me as family, so why should I worry about you all? Even you, dear brother, seek to leave me in search of another.”

**_2011_ **

Elijah screamed as he woke up. He sat up quickly. Hayley and Azariah both looked at him with concern. He locked eyes with Hayley. Azairah hadn’t seen that kind of rage in his eyes since the night Klaus broke the curse and Elijah had been trying to kill Klaus. He stood suddenly. Hayley backed away from him. He stalked towards her. Without warning, he grabbed her by the neck and sped her against the wall. She yelled out in pain.

“Niklaus, you bastard!” Elijah shouted. “I’ll kill you!”

Azariah ripped Elijah off of Hayley. “Run! Go, run!”

Hayley did as she was asked, tears streaming from her eyes. Azariah turned her attention to Elijah. He tried to rush past her. Nothing was breaking him out of his hallucination.

“Forgive me, my love.”

Riah snapped Elijah’s neck. He slumped into her arms. She gently brought him down to the ground. She rested his head in her lap again. She leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath. She didn’t know how long he would remain unconscious or if he would still be murderous when he woke up. She’d break his neck as many times as she had to to ensure Hayley’s safety. He’d forgive her for that because he’d never forgive himself if he accidentally hurt Hayley in this state. Riah’s heart was pounding in her chest. She and Elijah had talked about their past, of course, because so much of it had been spent apart, but he hadn’t told her everything. She hadn’t told him everything, either.

The sun started to fall while she waited for Elijah to wake up. She heard Hayley talking quietly with someone outside. Whoever had left the bible, Riah imagined. Hayley was safe. If she had made any sign of distress, Riah would have been there in an instant. She wanted to be there when Elijah cameto. 

He woke up slowly, gently rubbing his neck and groaning. The fever had broken and the colour was coming back to his face. He opened his eyes and looked up at Azariah. He sat up quickly.

“Hayley-”

“Is fine. Your neck hurts because I broke it before you could hurt her.”

Elijah let out a sigh of relief. “The fever’s passed.”

“And it looks like you’re all healed up. I think we should go home, yeah?”

Elijah nodded. Azariah helped him to his feet. They left the shack. Hayley was sitting at a campfire with a stranger. There was nonsense of danger. Hayley seemed at ease. Azariah smiled politely at the woman.

“Sorry for the commotion,” she said. “Thank you for looking after her.”

The woman nodded. Hayley bit her lip, looking from the vampires to the werewolf.

“I’ve got to get these two home. But I’ll be back, okay? I need to know more.”

The woman nodded. “Keep that mark covered up.”

She left. Azariah watched her go curiously.

“Make a friend?” Riah asked.

“I think I just met part of my family.”

****

* * *

****

The car stopped just shy of the house. None of them had spoken since Elijah started driving. None of them knew what to say. Hayley looked up at the house. She shook her head.

“You’ve all suffered so much because of him. Why do you keep coming back? Why are you trying to put together your family when it's so clear that one part of it is broken?” She asked. 

“To me, the very definition of the word ‘broken’ suggests that something can be fixed. I have a whole eternity to accomplish one single task: my brother's salvation. If I surrender this, then tell me-- what value would I be to my family? To myself? ...To your child?”

Hayley looked away from him. Azariah stared at her hands. She had always known Elijah would choose Klaus first. She’d come to terms with it. She followed him because she didn’t want to be alone anymore. Elijah was her home and Niklaus was his. That was just the way that it was here. Elijah got out of the car first with Azariah close behind him. They walked into the house. They could hear Klaus and Rebekah arguing in the living room. Both of them rushed towards the sounds. Klaus had a dagger pointed at Rebekah’s throat. Klaus looked as two more entered the room. He was outnumbered.

“Elijah and Azariah are home. There's only one dagger. Which one of us will you be punishing today?”

“I contemplated a game of eenie-meenie-miney-moe. You betrayed me. My own sister!”

“Don’t you dare touch her, Klaus!” Azariah said.

Klaus pointed the dagger at Elijah. “Ah, love. Perhaps it should be you then, brother. Or, you, Azariah. Either way, it’s a two for one deal. Both of you will suffer. As you should! Stealing my child away with every fawning moment of tenderness you show to Hayley!”

“This has nothing to do with Hayley,” Elijah said.

“It has everything to do with her! She's adored you, both of you, since she arrived. And now my child, my blood, will grow up to call you father!”

“Is that what it is? You are once again worried that you will be left behind? Has history taught you nothing? We don't abandon you, Nik, you drive us away!” Rebekah shouted.

“Is that so? What have I done lately, other than cooperate? I bow down to you, brother, to make up for daggering you. For the greater good of our plan to reclaim our home. Looked the other way, sister, while you repeat the same cycle with Marcel. Falling again for a man you shouldn't be with, while he controls the empire that we built! That he took! I have tried to help you, Azariah, to make up for what transpired between us. To bring you back into the family once more. Now, I make no excuses for past sins. But in the one moment when you two could have chosen to stand by me-- to believe in me, to believe my intentions for my own child were pure-- you chose to stand against me, to side with my enemies. How is it that Riah, who hates me more than you ever could, saw what my own blood could not? I wanted our home back. Now I have it. So, I'm going to live there. And the three of you... you can stay here together and rot.”

Klaus angrily shoved the dagger into Elijah’s hands and stormed off. He wiped away the tears in his eyes. Azariah watched him go. They stood in silence. She would be lying if she said that there was no guilt in her heart. She would be lying if she said that she cared he was out of the house, too. She sighed. There was no other way the day could have ended, it seemed, besides with an explosive fight. Slowly, they dispersed to their rooms. Azariah laid on the bed and stared at the ceiling for a moment. Klaus would get over it. He always did. At least, she hoped he would. For Hayley’s sake. For the sake of his unborn child.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was hoping to give a little more insight not only into the kind of relationship that Elijah and Azariah had in the beginning but also the relationship that Azariah and Klaus had. So yeah. She used to think of him as a sibling, the same way she does for Kol and Rebekah and then things happened and she doesn't really anymore.


	45. Just to Burn: Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't think it would take me this long to finish the chapter but here we are! It's arrived!

When Azariah woke up, she could hear a commotion coming from downstairs. She grumbled under her breath and rolled out of bed. Whatever was happening, she was absolutely sure that Klaus had some hand in it. Even if he wasn’t talking to any of them, he was still finding ways to make their lives hell in one way or another. She got dressed quickly and left her room. Immediately, she was cut off by two men taking one of the paintings off of the wall. They marched past her as if she wasn’t even there. Ah. So that’s what Klaus was doing. He was being petty and taking everything that he considered his out of the house and to the compound. Azariah pinched her nose and she walked to the foyer. Rebekah was arguing with one of the men taking the painting.

Riah walked towards the door. Elijah was standing just shy of the staircase. He looked annoyed but she doubted it was because there were movers in the house. It was because Hayley wasn’t. Klaus had taken her the same night he’d condemned the family. Azariah was already trying to think of a way that she could check in on Hayley without being seen by Klaus. She knew practically nothing about the compound, so it wasn’t going to be easy, but she had to make sure that Hayley was safe. Klaus wouldn’t intentionally do anything to harm her, not while she was pregnant with his child, but he had a tendency to think only of himself. Those around him were never truly safe. 

Rebekah put her hands on her hips. “Absolutely not! I paid for that!”

Elijah scoffed. “Please. You’ve never paid for anything in your life,”

“I hardly see how that's relevant. Nik's just punishing us,”

“Well, we've hurt him. Deeply, it would appear.”

“We believed the worst about him, the one time in a million when the worst wasn't actually the truth.”

“Correction” Riah said. _”You two_ believed the worst about him. _I_ told you not to believe Tyler Lockwood. Now, I’m going to check on Hayley. Anyone feel like coming along for the journey?”

She walked outside with her hands in her pockets. She didn’t glance back to see who was following her. She didn’t doubt that Elijah would be by her side. She was a little surprised when Rebekah clambered into the car with an exaggerated sigh of frustration. It was her usual show of indifference that let the others know that she did care. Riahs started the car. She had no plan other than just getting to the compound. No doubt it would be crawling with vampires that were working for Klaus now. At least pretending to work for Klaus. Rebekah had told them all about the failed attack. Hayley didn’t deserve to suffer the consequences.

With each passing minute, Riah was being reminded of just how much she hated Klaus. She wanted to believe in him the way that Elijah did if not just for Elijah’s sake. Still, it seemed like Klaus was determined to be the bad guy. Sometimes, Riah was worried that he had been given one too many chances. She really didn’t want to give him anymore. Not for anyone.

The compound came into view. Azariah parked a little ways down the street, hoping that their car wouldn’t attract too much attention. She looked over. Daywalkers were patrolling the entrance. They were watching to make sure that no one… unsavoury was hanging around. People like the Originals. Klaus had probably put them all on high alert to let them know as soon as anyone he didn’t like showed up. Azariah hadn’t been expecting that they’d be able to get in easily. She leaned back in the driver’s seat and looked at her passengers.

“Anyone have any ideas?” she asked with a sigh.

“There are more than a few side entrances. Not even Klaus would have them all covered. There aren’t enough daywalkers for that,” Elijah said. “We can get in through there.”

“And after that? Not to be a buzzkill, but I honestly didn’t expect all three of us to go on this little excursion. We have no clue where Hayley is.”

“And we still have to get her out.”

“What? No. This isn’t a rescue mission, Elijah. We’re only here to make sure that she’s okay. We-”

“We can’t leave her there, Riah,” Elijah said.

“Fine. If, _if_ she wants to come back to the plantation, then we will take her with us, but we aren’t forcing her to go anywhere. That would make us no better than him. So, we are going to find her, make sure she’s okay, and leave as quickly as we can. We can’t be hasty about this, Elijah. I want her back home, too, believe me, but there are smarter ways to go about this. Unless you’d like to go on another werewolf venom trip. I certainly wouldn’t enjoy it.”

Elijah sighed heavily. He knew that she had a point. Klaus would have guards watching Hayley constantly. If they just suddenly started to go missing or stop reporting in, he would get suspicious. If they tried to take Hayley away from them, he would track them down and find some kind of punishment for them all. He was already angry enough with them. Taking the mother of his unborn child would probably put the final nail in the (hopefully metaphorical) coffin. Azariah took a deep breath and opened the car door. Unfortunately, it was now or never and she needed to know that Hayley was okay. Elijah and Rebekah were quick behind her. 

Elijah took the lead. He knew this building better than the rest of them. He’d had a hand in designing it, after all. Rebekah and Riah followed him to one of the side entrances. It was pretty well cordoned off, all things considered. Of course, the guards, if they could even really be called that, didn’t stand a chance against three Original vampires. They were just lucky that none of them were in the mood to clean blood off of yet another decent shirt. The men would just have sore necks for a couple of hours. Elijah held open the door for Rebekah and Riah. They were quick to enter. They just had to find Hayley. Easy.

They headed up the stairs, doing their best to be practically invisible to the rest of the compound. Riah spotted her first. Hayley was looking over her shoulder as she made her way across the courtyard. Towards one of the other exits. Rebekah and Riah exchanged a glance. They rushed towards where she was going to be, following Elijah’s careful footsteps. Hayley stopped just shy of the door and looked over her shoulder again. A vampire stepped in front of her. Azariah moved faster, snapping his neck and dropping him to the side. Hayley let out a sigh of relief that was quickly followed with a concerned look.

“You shouldn’t be here, Riah,” Hayley shook her head. “Klaus has his guys watching me.”

Azariah shrugged. “You don’t really think I came here alone, do you?”

Two more vampires were kicked around the corner, followed by Elijah and Rebekah. Riah grinned a little, leaning against the wall. She stepped forward and hugged Hayley. It had been too long since she had seen her. 

“We wanted to make sure that you were okay. Klaus… he hasn’t been hurting you or anything like that? You’re eating properly? I know most vampires don’t do a good job of stocking food, especially not for a pregnant-”

“I’m fine,” Hayley smiled nervously. “I've been deemed under protection by the almighty Klaus. It's the werewolves who need help. He ordered a wolf hunt as some jacked-up peace offering to Marcel's crew. You have to help them.”

“Out in the Bayou? Do we look like a bloody vampire-rescue-squad? I think you should be grateful we came to you!” Rebekah scoffed.

“Listen. Rebekah. All my life, I've wanted to know who my real family was, and just as I find out that they're out there in the Bayou, Klaus orders them killed. You wanna help me? Help my people. Please.”

“We’ll see what we can do, Hayley,” Riah said.

“You have my word,” Elijah added.

Rebekah threw her hands in the air and started to leave. Azariah turned to join her when it hit her. She didn’t know if Erik had been a part of the massacre. She hadn’t realised what Rebekah and Marcel had been planning that day so she had no chance to beg Erik not to be a part of it. What if he was one of the vampires that Klaus had killed. Her heart dropped as the thought hit her. She turned back to Hayley as Rebekah moved out of earshot.

“Hayley, have you seen a vampire that looks like Finn around here? He’s tall, dark hair, green eyes. His name is Erik,” Riah asked.

Hayley nodded. “Yeah. Klaus was giving him shit yesterday because he looks like his brother. He’s alive.”

Azariah let out a sigh of relief. That was a good sign. That he was alive. Not that Klaus had started to make the connection between Erik and Finn. She wasn’t shocked, of course. Finn and Erik were practically twins. If she was lucky, which she doubted she was, Klaus wouldn’t start to put two and two together and figure out that Azariah had a son. She didn’t want Erik to be used as leverage in any of Klaus’s sick games. She needed to work harder when they got back from the bayou to convince Erik to leave New Orleans. They hadn’t had a real conversation in over a month. She had been a little preoccupied keeping her family _away_ from him. Now that he had seen firsthand what his uncle was capable of, she hoped it would be a little bit easier to get him out of the compound, at least.

Elijah took Riah’s hand. He was the only Original that knew Erik even existed in the first place. The fact that he was alive and well in New Orleans was knowledge she wanted to keep as secret as possible. For now, she needed to make sure that a bunch of vampires didn’t try to make werewolves extinct in the Quarter. She never thought that she’d be actively defending werewolves in her lifetime. She supposed that immortality lended for one to do everything at least once. If Klaus was in charge, she’d probably have to make a habit of going on little excursions like this to keep the damage to a minimum.

Rebekah tapped her foot impatiently against the pavement as Elijah and Azariah made their way back to the car. She was frustrated that they had stayed to have some kind of a private conversation. Riah smiled sympathetically. She couldn’t even tell Rebekah about Erik. The less people that knew about him, the better. She hoped that Erik was keeping up with his doses of vervain. She shook her head. She had something else to focus on for the moment. Rebekah looked at Azariah suspiciously the whole ride to the bayou. She wanted to say something, but she kept her mouth shut. She was probably just pissed that Riah and Elijah had volunteered her services as a werewolf protector.

They stuck together as they walked through the muck. Riah kept her eyes peeled for any signs of vampires. The daywalkers would jump at the chance to hunt some werewolves. It wasn’t anywhere close to a full moon. They had the advantage. The werewolves didn’t know how many daywalkers lived in New Orleans. Just another disadvantage. Riah and the others were really going to have their work cut out for them. She stepped around a fallen tree, bracing herself on a branch. The werewolves had to be somewhere close by. At least the vampires, right? Riah was sick and tired of the goddamn bayou.

They reached the encampments just after Klaus’s vampire hitmen did. Diego, the vampire whose neck Riah had snapped earlier, looked around the area. It was clearly a place werewolves liked to hole up.

“Hey, they're obviously here. Fan out, find 'em, and bring me some heads!” he yelled.

Azariah, Rebekah, and Elijah stepped from behind the trees. The vampires hesitated to move again. Their reputation preceded them, obviously. Azariah put her hands in her pockets and took a few steps forward.

“I'd rather you didn't,” Elijah said.

“The hell are you doing out here?”

“I've come to suggest you seek other hunting grounds.”

Diego shrugged. “Suggestion noted…”

Diego tried to move away from Elijah. Azariah stepped in front of him and put her hand on his chest. It would be so easy for her to reach in and grab his heart. She turned her head to the side and smiled. Diego narrowed his eyes. Azariah stood her ground. Did he really think that she was going to be scared of him? A vampire that hadn’t been alive long enough to enter his 50s? It was cute. Really, it was.

“You know, I really don’t want to ruin this particular jacket,” Riah said, “but for you, I might make an exception.”

“What the hell do you care about wolves?”

“Generally, I don't. However, this particular clan is not to be touched.” Elijah gave a false. “Goodbye.”

Azariah backed away from Diego and gave a little wave. “Bye.”

“Nothing here anyway.”

Diego whistled. The vampires gathered back up and started to leave the area. Azariah watched to make sure that they actually did. They didn’t always have the best kind of luck in these situations. Rebekah let out a pleased sigh. She hated these woods even more than Azariah did. 

“Ah, great. I think as well our job here is done.”

Elijah looked behind his shoulder. “Not quite.”

Azariah looked at him curiously as he sped away. She shrugged at Rebekah. It wasn’t like they really had anything better to do than follow him and whoever he was chasing. She put her hands back in her pockets and followed Elijah. He stopped in front of a familiar woman. The one that had left the Bible for Hayley. Riah hadn’t thought that she’d ever see her again. She didn’t look scared to see everyone there. If anything, she had been expecting them. She even looked amused.

“We're not here to harm you. Hello, again. Eve, was it?” Elijah smiled softly at her.

“One of Hayley's litter-mates, I presume?” Rebekah sighed.

“Hayley sent you here to protect us, didn't she? Tell her we appreciate the concern, but we've been looking out for ourselves for a while now. Nobody finds us unless we wanna be found.”

“Well, we found you, so…”

Eve gave Rebekah a look. “Like I said. There's something I thought you and your family should know about.”

She started to walk along the path without offering any other kind of explanation. She had a stake and a map in her hands. She really was ready for any sign of vampires. Now, she had her three escorts. Though, as Riah thought about it, she was really escorting them. Riah had no clue where she was taking them. She didn’t think that Eve had ill intentions. She seemed like a nice person. Riah just didn’t make it a habit to trust anyone. Ever. She even had trouble trusting Rebekah at times. Elijah was the only one that she trusted here. He was sure this was the right thing to do, so she would go along with it. For the time being.

Eve stopped by the lake. She held out the map for everyone to get a better look at. She straightened it out against a stump. Eve started pointing different places out with her stake. 

“Surrounded by 20,000 acres of swamp, the ones born here, who now know it like the backs of our hands, will be fine. But here-- [She points at the map with her stake]-- newcomers from out of state. Not of Hayley's and my kin. But, word's spread about that baby of hers. A lot of werewolves wanna see this miracle pregnancy for themselves. Only now, the vampires are out looking for blood, and all these werewolves new at the Bayou might not know where to hide,” Eve said.

“You say that like we're supposed to care,” Rebekah scoffed.

“Believe me, you're gonna want them kept alive.”

“And why is that?” Azariah asked.

“See for yourself.”

She gathered up her things and started to leave again, leaving them the map with circled locations. Azariah huffed. “That’s ominous and not at all foreboding. Let’s go, shall we?”

Azariah led the way this time as they continued along the path. It seemed that Eve was right. Beyond a few claw marks here and there, there was no sign of any living werewolves. They knew how to hide. They had probably been doing it since Marcel had taken over. Riah kept an eye out for vampires, too. She didn’t want to inadvertently lead a group of them to an encampment, especially not if Eve was right. A bunch of outsiders didn’t need to die because of one of Klaus’s whims.

The encampment they found was completely empty. There was hardly a sign of a werewolf anywhere besides the stale scent of a pack long gone. Azariah took a deep breath as she went into one of the trailers. Empty. Elijah and Rebekah did the same. The wolves Eve had told them to find and protect were long gone. Riah didn’t know how exactly they were going to go about tracking those bastards now. This day was going to be a very long one. She could see it already. Rebekah looked about ready to throw in the towel and go home. Despite having grown up in conditions much worse than this, she had grown accustomed to a certain kind of life. They all had. Maybe they were just all growing soft in their old age.

Azariah made her way to the center of the camp. She took another look around the camp and shook her head. Rebekah straightened out and wiped her hands on her pants.

“All these wolves really travel in style, don't they?”

Elijah sighed as he left a trailer. “Empty.”

“Behind on their payments, perhaps?”

“So, let’s move onto the next one, then,” Azariah said. She pulled out the map of locations Eve had given them.

Rebekah groaned. “Let's not, and tell Hayley that we did.” Azariah and Elijah both have her a look. “FIne, we’ll continue on, then. Who’s Erik?”

Azariah stopped in her tracks. Rebekah looked at Riah triumphantly. Azariah had no idea that Rebekah had been listening to her conversation with Hayley. She’d been certain that the blonde vampire was far enough away. Riah looked over to Elijah nervously. She didn’t know how she was supposed to answer this without giving away everything. She knew that Rebekah wouldn’t understand what was happening. She had no idea that Azariah had ever even been pregnant, let alone given birth and now had a vampire son she’d accidentally abandoned for a thousand years. It sounded insane even for their family.

She didn’t know how much longer she’d be able to keep it a secret. Not if she wanted to get Erik out of New Orleans. Azariah wanted to trust Rebekah. She wanted to trust that she wouldn’t tell Klaus, even on accident. More than that, she wanted Erik to be safe.

“He’s someone important,” Riah said softly. Her voice was barely above a whisper. She didn’t want anyone, not even herself to hear. She needed to trust Rebekah. Elijah took Azariah’s hand. “He’s-”

Before Azariah could choke the words out, the branches behind them started to crack as footsteps raced towards them. All three heads swiveled to see vampires chasing a man. He was grabbed and immediately fangs sunk into his neck. One of the werewolves, then. And it just so happened that Diego was the vampire in question. Elijah rushed over to him and pulled his head backwards by his hair. The werewolf fell to the ground. Elijah held Diego tightly in a headlock.

“Darling, we need to stop meeting like this. This is how rumors begin!” Elijah said sarcastically. He let go of Diego. “You can go now.”

No one moved. Azariah and Elijah shared a glance. It seemed that the vampires weren’t taking this very seriously. They had a bad habit of refusing to respect their elders.

“Well, then, let’s put it this way, shall we, boys, girls, and others? Since threats seem to be the only thing you idiotic, mouthbreathing, oversized mosquitos seem to respond to, you have three minutes before _you’re_ the prey,” Riah said. She absentmindedly picked a piece of lint off of her sleeve. “And since you can’t even beat _one_ Original vampire with 100 bodies, I can only imagine the massacre it will be against three with…” she silently mouthed like she was counting numbers. “... 10 daywalkers? Maybe a few more.”

“In other words,” Elijah said, “you should heed our warning.”

Diego growled in frustration. Azariah flashed him a fake smile. Another threat, thinly veiled as it was. She was already counting down in her head. Diego waved to the others. They slowly started to leave.The werewolf groaned in pain. He was still bleeding quite a bit. Rebekah nodded in approval.

“Impressive!” she said.

“Well, I thought the situation demanded something a little dramatic,” Elijah shrugged.

The werewolf slowly got to his feet. He was clutching his neck trying to stop the bleeding. He looked at the three Originals suspiciously.

“Who are you people?” He asked.

Elijah made his way towards the man, but stopped just shy of him. He reached out for the necklace he was wearing. It was an old ring. Clearly, it had once housed a stone but it was long gone. Azariah had seen it before. She knew it, but she couldn’t place where. Elijah locked eyes with the werewolf.

“I would say the better question is, Who are you?”

****

* * *

****

Rebekah was the most relieved to be heading back home. She wouldn’t stop talking about how excited she was to take a relaxing bath and get the stench of the swamp out of her hair. Azariah couldn’t get Cary’s words out of her head. A whole werewolf pack with a legend about Klaus? Could they really be his descendants? Even if they weren’t, the rumour would surely be enough for Klaus to call off the murder party on them, wouldn’t it? Riah certainly hoped so. He no longer considered Elijah and Rebekah his blood (for the time being), so maybe his father’s descendants would change his mind a little bit.

Rebekah practically ran into the house. Elijah and Azariah were a little slower. As they entered the foyer, Elijah took Riah’s coat, hanging it up in the small closet by the door. He walked over to her, resting his hands on her hips. As he leaned down for a kiss, they heard Rebekah yelling about smelling of the bog again. They both smiled and chuckled. It was a little ridiculous. She was being hyperbolic and dramatic as she was prone to do. Riah rested her head against his shoulder with a grin. All in all, it had been a decent day. She hadn’t had to kill anyone and she found out that her son was alive. Elijah leaned down to kiss her again. She braced herself against him with a smile. It had been a long day. They deserved a moment to relax together.

“Serves you right, for your pathetic attempt to undermine my rule.”

Klaus’s voice rang out from the living room. Elijah and Riah moved away from each other again. Azariah sighed in frustration. He always had to ruin the good things. She pushed away from Elijah and walked towards his voice. Rebekah was already backing away from her brother in fear. Klaus was situated at the piano like he still lived in the damned place. Riah put her hand on her hip.

“When I order werewolves to be hunted to extinction, I expect you to stand aside and let the blood flow,” Klaus sneered.

“How beautifully commanding of you, Klaus. And here I thought we had free will,” Riah said sarcastically.

Elijah threw the ring at Klaus. “Do you recognize it? Perhaps you don't. It has been a thousand years since you last saw it grace the hand of our mother. The ring was in possession of one of the very wolves whose extinction you just ordered. So, naturally, I questioned him. He spoke of a legend. A legend wherein long ago, a chief of theirs had fathered a child to a very powerful witch. Their mythology further states that this child, a son, was later transformed into something this clan had never before seen. Something werewolf and vampire.”

“Nik, we're trying to make amends. We found remnants of your family. The bloodline of your true father. And we saved them from being slaughtered at the hands of the vampires you command,” Rebekah said.

“Your ambitions have come before this family for far too long. Niklaus, I beseech you please, come home.”

“What home? This pathetic substitute? You see, despite all your doubts, all your attempts to thwart me, I've reclaimed our true home. I took back the entire city.”

“Please,” Azariah scoffed, “that’s hardly a victory. Tell me, does it still taste sweet, knowing that the mother of your child is your prisoner? Or does that simply make it better? You _are_ a sadistic prick, after all.”

“Ah, it all comes down to the pretty little wolf,” Klaus grinned, leaning against the piano. “What do you think, brother? Shall we try to set the two of them up or do you want to have a go, too? Or are you more of a watcher?”

Elijah and Riah both moved towards Klaus. One or both of them were going to kill him. Rebekah stopped them.

“Stop it, both of you!” She yelled.

The rest of the room went silent. Klaus slowly stood up from behind the piano. He held the ring up for inspection and shook his head. He dropped it back to the piano. The metal clattered and fell.

“Even if this is what you say it is, I have had enough of family to last me a lifetime. Why would I possibly want any more?”

Klaus walked out of the house, leaving the three of them alone. Elijah looked… defeated. Completely, and utterly defeated. Rebekah sulked off to her room. Azariah sat on the piano bench with her head in her hands. She picked up the ring and turned it over in her hands a few times. Elijah sat next to her, pressing a few of the keys absentmindedly. Riah leaned her head against his shoulder. Klaus had a bad habit of pushing people away. Normally, Azariah wouldn’t mind. She was usually _trying_ to get him to leave her alone. She hated how it was clearly making Elijah feel. He was the dutiful older brother. The one that put everything else on hold to make sure that his family was safe. Loved. Happy. Klaus declaring that he was giving up, essentially, on all of that… Riah could practically hear Elijah’s heart breaking in his chest.

****

* * *

****

Riah looked up. Hayley was standing alone on her balcony. There weren’t any guards around her. Maybe she’d been able to convince Klaus to give her some time to herself. Or maybe just being in her room was enough for that. She wasn’t the reason that Azariah had come here tonight. She had other people she was worried about within the compound. Elijah took her hand reassuringly. She took a deep breath and stepped into the compound.

She got lucky. Erik wasn’t too far in and there wasn’t anyone else in the courtyard. Azariah considered leaving. It would be easier than what she actually needed to do. She stepped out from the shadows.

“Erik,” she said.

He turned, nearly jumping out of his skin when he saw her. He always seemed to be shocked when she showed up. “Azariah! What the hell are you doing here? If Klaus sees you-”

“He’ll bite me at most and I’ll be on bedrest for a day. I just wanted to make sure that you’re okay. I heard you were part of the attack the other day.”

“Yeah. I was.”

Riah shook her head. “I don’t get it. You _know_ how dangerous Klaus is, even without the whole werewolf part, and yet… you risked your life for Marcel. Why?”

“He’s…” Erik ran a hand through his hair as he struggled to find the right words. “He’s _my_ family. I found him here, in 1919, half dead and almost on fire. I saved him. He took me in.”

“And then you ended up giving museum tours in Atlanta?” 

Erik chuckled. “Yeah, well, I didn’t come back to New Orleans until _after_ your boyfriend and his brother came to town. Marcel wanted someone he could trust.”

“Well… I’m glad that he trusts you, but you… _I_ should have been there for you, Erik. I’ve failed you one too many times. I’m not going to make that mistake again. Goodbye, Erik. I hope we’ll see each other again.”

Riah didn’t stay to see his reaction. She’d spent too much time in the open with him already. Any longer and they’d start to attract prying eyes. Unwelcome questions and all that. She turned and walked up the stairs. To Davina. Riah had promised the young witch she’d bring a new spell. She didn’t want to break her word and she didn’t want Davina to feel like they had just used her. Azariah followed her scent to the room she assumed was Davina’s. It was decorated the same and that violin… her friend’s violin was there. But Davina wasn’t. Azariah opted to leave the spell and a short note apologising for not staying longer. She just wanted to go home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Azariah gets some soft moments with Erik. As a treat.


	46. Just to Burn: Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got a replacement key for my keyboard. I also got a promotion at work, so I may or may not have as much time to write in the coming weeks while I'm being trained and all that good stuff. Anywho, enjoy!

Azariah turned over in the bed. She and Elijah had made the move to the compound a day or so ago. At Klaus’s request, naturally. Riah personally didn’t care _where_ they slept as long as she had a real bed. Besides, now she could keep a closer eye on Hayley and make sure that she stayed out of too much trouble. Between her and Davina, Riah had her hands full. She’d been trying to help the young witch with her powers. She was clearly starting to succumb to it. Riah could see it in the dark circles Davina tried to hide with makeup. She wasn’t sleeping well and even with all of the control Riah tried to help her with, she was struggling more and more as the date of the reaping drew nearer. Azariah hated to see it.

She rested her head on Elijah’s chest. His heartbeat was steady. As far as she could tell, he was still sleeping. Good. He needed to rest. Elijah had the unfortunate tendency to work himself thin. Riah did her best to make sure that he actually went to bed, though she usually had to do some convincing first. She let her eyes close again. Before she could fall asleep again, there was some kind of commotion outside. Elijah stirred and woke up. He pulled Azariah closer to him.

She’d almost forgotten that tonight was the Casket Girls Festival. The city of New Orleans certainly loved their parties. No doubt it was tourists making all the noise. It seemed that every other day, there was something going on to make an ungodly amount of noise. Azariah groaned as she rolled out of bed. Now that Elijah was awake, they were going to have to get their day started. They never really got chances to have lazy mornings anymore. Klaus caused too much chaos for them to feel comfortable taking their eyes off of him for even a second. That was how people ended up dead.

Azariah spent most of the morning absentmindedly exploring the compound. She’d never been there before. It was obvious that while Elijah had done most of the design work on the house, Klaus had added in his own fair share of input. That was why he called it their family home. Just like the mansion in Mystic Falls, he had supposedly had it built in the hopes that his family would one day live there all together. So much for that plan. Two out of the six Originals were dead and he was barely talking to Elijah and Azariah now, even after he invited them to move in with him. It was a fragile balance, ready to break at the slightest provocation. Instead of walking on eggshells around Klaus, Azariah just avoided him all together. It was easier to keep the peace that way.

She passed by Hayley’s room and caught a glimpse of her struggling to put on an old wedding dress. Azariah smiled softly, leaning against the door and knocking against the frame. Hayley smiled back at her.

“Need a little help?” Riah asked.

“You’ll probably have to use all of your vampire strength,” Hayley chuckled.

Azariah pushed off of the frame and walked over to Hayley. The werewolf turned to look at herself in the mirror while Riah worked on getting the zipper to move. It was probably as old as the dress itself. She doubted anyone had thought to change it. She carefully untangled it from the fabric and moved it up. She buttoned the top and ran her fingers against Hayley’s smooth skin. She ghosted over the birthmark. The symbol of where she came from. A dangerous mark, if the rumours were to be believed. Hayley watched her movements carefully through the mirror.

Riah picked up the sheer shawl that Hayley had found with the dress and put it over her shoulders. Hayley brought it in close.

“Thanks. Not too many pregnant Casket Girls, I guess,” Hayley joked.

“Only because they’d all be too jealous of you. And as long as you keep the-”

“Keep the freaky werewolf birthmark covered?”

“Yes, as long as you keep the freaky werewolf birthmark covered, I see no reason that you should miss out on the party. Though I doubt anyone here would even dare to _think_ about hurting you while you’re under our protection, it’s much better to be safe than sorry. You could go with me and Elijah.”

Hayley sighed at her reflection in the mirror. “I’d better not. Klaus is already testy enough as it is. Let’s not rock the boat, okay?”

Riah smiled again, a little sadder this time. “Of course.”

“Do you mind?”

Hayley dropped the shaw and gestured loosely to the dress. Riah helped her undo the buttons and zipper again before she left her alone in the room once more. Even though Riah had moved into the compound to try and be closer to Hayley, it only seemed to have the opposite effect. They were farther apart now than ever. Riah was going to have to fix things with Klaus before she could be friends with Hayley again and that wasn’t something that she _wanted_ to do. She’d spent the better part of 6 centuries hating and fearing the hybrid. It was going to take more than a half-assed apology to forget all that had been said on both sides.

Riah continued her half-assed tour of the compound. The vampires that had “pledged” loyalty to Klaus stayed away from her and the other Originals for the most part. Riah couldn’t blame them and she couldn’t say that she cared at all. All of them were a little bit too arrogant for her liking anyway. Marcel’s power plays had allowed them to get even bigger egos than most vampires had and that made them stupid to no end. Annoying, too. They’d benefit to learn their actual place on the food chain here.

Elijah found her during her exploration. When she glanced back at him, he looked worried. Azariah looked at him curiously and furrowed her brow.

“Davina’s missing,” Elijah said. “She’s nowhere in the compound.”

“What?!”

Azariah marched towards the office. No doubt Klaus at least was staying there. How could Davina have just disappeared? There was no way that Klaus would have left her unsupervised for any amount of time, just like with Hayley. Riah should have been paying closer attention. She let herself get caught up in other things. She was honestly surprised that more things weren’t going wrong now. Elijah and Riah came around the corner. Marcel instantly turned towards them both. Klaus was a little slower to react to them. Marcel was clearly suspicious.

“Her violin is missing. She may have left of her own volition,” Elijah said.

“What did you say to her in the attic?” Marcel stood in front of Elijah, barely a foot away from him. Azariah crossed her arms. There was that arrogance he passed on to his men. “She lied to my face so she could stay up there, thinking you’d help her control her magic. How do we know you and your little girlfriend over here didn’t take her?”

Azariah pushed past Elijah so she was between him and Marcel. She met Marcel’s gaze easily. Angrily. “You want to try that one again?” She growled.

Elijah put a hand on Azariah’s shoulder. Marcel took a step away from them. It didn’t do much to calm her down. She didn’t like being accused of things she didn’t do, especially when it was implied that she’d hurt a child.

“Neither of us know where Davina is,” Elijah said coldly. “I can assure you, I have absolutely no desire to see that child come into harm’s way. She’s suffered enough with this Harvest ritual nonsense.”

“That _child_ , to whom you refer so affectionately, is the most powerful witch in New Orleans. If she’s fled, what’s to stop her from destroying us? In fact, destroying all we’ve worked for? No. If she’s not a friend to this family, then she is our enemy,” Klaus sneered.

“She _is_ a friend,” Marcel insisted.

“Well, let’s hope so. Lucky for you, I know how to get her back. Follow my lead.”

Klaus left the room without looking back to see if the others were following. Elijah stopped Marcel as he stood up.

“You know how Niklaus operates. If he perceives a threat, he can become quite ruthless. This would not bode well for Davina,”

“I’m not going to let anybody lay a finger on her,” 

“Good. Then we’re all on the same page,” Riah said. “I promise you, Marcel, I only want to help her control her magic before it consumes her.”

Marcel nodded. Riah doubted that the two of them would ever trust each other, but they could at least acknowledge when their goals were the same. Davina was just a teenager. Even she didn’t know what she was capable of. If Klaus provoked her, there was a fairly heavy chance that she could seriously hurt someone. She’d probably be somewhere in the crowd tonight. That would be their best bet for finding her before Klaus enacted whatever sick plan he had in mind. He enjoyed using other people’s loved ones and fear of death against them. That was the last thing that any of them needed.

Klaus yelled for them. Ah, so he finally realised he was alone. The three of them exchanged glances before they started on their way to Niklaus. He led them to the streets of New Orleans, where the Casket Girls Festival was already in full swing. Riah wrinkled her nose as tourists reeking of alcohol and various types of drugs sauntered past them. That ruled out tracking Davina by scent. Riah bit the inside of her cheek. The witches had to know by now that the vampires were searching for Davina. The poor girl had a target on her back. Azariah really hoped that Klaus didn’t find her first.

Loud music blared. People shouted at each other. It was beyond crowded in the streets. Riah mumbled under her breath as she scanned for any sign of Davina. Marcel called Father Kieran in a desperate attempt to find Davina while Klaus disappeared into the crowd by himself. She hadn’t gone back to the church. Yet. Azariah would have liked to keep a closer eye on Klaus, but she trusted Marcel would know more about Davina’s habits than the rest of them. Elijah grabbed Azariah’s hand. He was just as concerned as she was. Neither of them knew exactly what lengths Klaus would go to get what he wanted. He was already considering _killing_ Davina if she didn’t cooperate. Who knew what he’d do in the meantime.

Marcel nodded and hung up the phone. “Kieran is gonna call me first if he hears anything.”

Elijah took a breath as he nodded his head. That was the best that they could hope for at the moment. Anything to keep Klaus from finding her before Azariah could. She knew that she could calm Davina down. She could talk to her like a person and get her to come home. Obviously, Davina had left for a reason. Riah didn’t know what that was, but if she could just get _five_ minutes alone with Davina, everything would be fine. She believed that Davina trusted her. She’d done everything in her power to show Davina that she was a friend while she was in the compound. She hoped it was enough. Klaus stalked up to them. He looked at the three vampires like they were conspiring against him. Well, technically they were, but that was because he wanted to kill a child.

“Ah, you all look rather cozy,” Klaus jabbed.

“Hardly,” Marcel scoffed. “I was just telling Elijah how we're wasting time.”

“You don't like festivals?”

Rebekah joined them, too. She looked a little too proud of herself not to have had a hand in all of this. She was planning something, too. There were too many moving pieces in this and Davina was just going to get caught in the middle of a war she never should have been a part of in the first place.

“I don't see why not,” Rebekah sighed. “Who doesn't love a street fair?”

“Sister, come to help us find our stray?”

Rebekah smiled serenely, “We can't let your secret weapon get in the wrong hands, can we?”

“For the record, we're moments away from retrieving her.”

“I recognize that tone of voice, Niklaus,” Elijah said. “Clearly you have some diabolical machination. What is it?”

Klaus smirked in response, leaving them again to walk towards someone Azariah didn’t recognise. He put his hand on the boy’s shoulder and said something to him. He’d compelled him, then, to follow. Riah didn’t know who the kid was, but she could make a few different guesses. If Klaus was certain they were close to finding Davina now, it was because he had leverage. Klaus started to walk back towards the compound with his new hostage. Elijah took Azariah’s hand. She stayed in place.

Elijah looked back at Riah curiously. She shook her head.

“This isn’t right. Make sure… please, make sure that he doesn’t hurt anyone, Elijah. I’m going to keep looking for Davina out here,” Riah urged.

He gave a slight nod. “Be careful.”

“You, too.”

Azariah knew it was a long shot. Father Kieran had already told them that Davina wasn’t at the church, but it made sense that she would go back there. She had felt safe there, once. It wasn’t a bad place to hide, either. Between the attic and the basement, there were too many places to look. It was also obvious. For some reasons, that made it an even better place to hide if people were looking for you. Riah hoped that her hunch was right. It could help prevent a lot of unnecessary death at the hands of one overemotional hybrid.

Azariah pressed a quick kiss to Elijah’s lips before she disappeared into the crowd. Saint Anne’s Church was close. It was why Marcel had kept Davina there in the first place. Riah pushed past all of the tourists. The shutters on the church windows suddenly flew open. There was no wind strong enough from the outside for that to happen. Something was happening. Riah ran inside.

Carefully, she stepped over the bodies of four witches. Including Sabine. The witches had really come for Davina. Riah had thought… without Agnes, they didn’t have an elder. Right? It didn’t matter now, anyway. For now, she just had to get to Davina.

The young witch was kneeling over Cami’s unconscious body. She noticed Azariah slowly walking towards her. Riah held her hands in the air slightly and stopped moving. She looked over at Cami.

“Is she breathing? Is she hurt at all?” Riah asked.

Davina shook her head uncertainly.

“Okay. Okay. I’m not here to hurt you, Davina, and I’m not going to bring you back to the compound. Not if you don’t want to go. I just want to help you.”

“Like Elijah helped me? Like _Marcel_ helped me?” she spat.

“No. Like how _I’ve_ helped you. I want to help you control this, Davina,” Azariah gestured to the dead witches, “before you hurt yourself. Will you let me? Please?”

“He has Tim.”

“Who? Klaus?”

Davina nodded. Azariah cursed under her breath. That was who Klaus had gone to talk to, then. He’d taken Davina’s friend as leverage as he was prone to do. Azariah assumed as much, of course, but she’d hoped that she was wrong. Riah held out her hand to Davina. She took it hesitantly. Riah pulled her to her feet. She glanced down at Cami. The witches were dead. Both Klaus and Marcel had a soft spot for her. Riah could hear her heart still beating and her breathing was mostly steady. She’d wake up with one hell of a headache, but she’d live.

Azariah and Davina walked side by side back to the compound. Riah couldn’t fully tell what the expression on her face was. It was a mixture of so many different things. No one emotion was more present than the others, except for perhaps worry. Either for Tim, Cami, or herself. Riah couldn’t know for sure. Davina didn’t let go of her hand, not for an instant. Azariah really hoped that that was a sign that Davina trusted her. She was going to do whatever she could to keep Davina _and_ Tim safe. There was no need for them to die, even if Klaus disagreed.

As they got closer to the compound, Riah could hear soft violin music playing. It was a beautiful but somber tune. It was surprisingly appropriate, given the situation. Klaus yelled something and the music changed. It was a much happier, lively tune now. Davina let go of Riah’s hadn and marched towards the entrance. Riah trailed behind her.

“Hello, love,” Klaus purred. He turned to Tim, sitting high in the rafters like he didn’t have a care in the world. “Silence is golden, Timothy. Thank you. Ah, Azariah, our lost lamb. Once again, you have returned to the flock, sister. And you bring gifts.”

“Klaus-”

“You got me here. Now let him down,” Davina said.

“Well, first we need to have a little chat about you returning to the fold.”

“What did I say, Klaus? I got this.” Marcel turned to Davina and his expression instantly softened. “D, what happened? Why’d you run? Hey, I can make it right.”

“How? By threatening my friend?” Davina scoffed.

“Actually, that was _my_ idea. Apologies. I have been known to go too far to make a point. But, I do always get results.”

Klaus smirked. He was always so smug. So sure that he was in the right, even if he killed everyone in his path to get there. Davina locked eyes with Kalus, the same blind confidence and anger reflected in her gaze. Riah took a step back. It was never a good look for any of them.

“You pretend to be so confident, but I know the truth. You’re afraid everyone can see what you really are: an animal.” Davina held out her hand. Klaus fell to his knees, groaning in pain as Davina moved closer to him. “A beast.”

Riah gently put her hand on Davina’s shoulder. “Remember, Davina, control.”

Davina shrugged her off. She was letting her rage consume her. She turned her head to the side quickly. Azariah was sent flying against the wall. She was pinned. She struggled to break free of Davina’s spell. She was going to use too much power. She was going to get herself killed. Every time that Azariah moved her arms away from the brick, they were slammed back down painfully. Davina didn’t pay any attention to her. She was too focused on hurting Klaus as much as possible. Normally, Riah would have been fine with that but she didn’t want Davina to die over this. Not for him.

“Why don’t you show your _real_ face?”

Klaus yowled in pain as his bones started to crack. They twisted and contorted as Davina forced him to turn into a werewolf. Riah grimaced as she watched. His eyes flashed yellow. His fangs grew. Even from where she was, Azariah could see the slight tears in his eyes. Davina twisted her hands. There was one final snap as Klaus’s neck broke. He collapsed to the ground. Elijah stared at Davina in shock and horror.

“That’s enough of you,” she sneered at Klaus’s unconscious form.

Elijah glanced up at Azariah. He held up a hand as he moved towards Davina. Riah tried to shake her head to tell him no. He needed to stay away. He looked from his brother to Davina.

“Davina,” he said softly, “you don’t have to do this.”

“You! You looked me in the eyes and lied to my face. Pretended you wanted to help me and pawned me off to somebody else!”

“Listen to me-”

“You call yourself the noble one, but you’re a killer just like your brother. For 1,000 years, you’ve fed on innocent blood. Why don’t you choke on it?”

With another surge of power, Elijah started to choke. He coughed and sputtered as blood tumbled out of his mouth in waves. Riah cried out to him. It covered everything. Every drop of human blood he’d consumed. He reached out towards Azariah before he, too, fell on the floor. She didn’t know if he was dead or just unconscious. There was so much blood that she couldn't tell if he was desiccating or not. She hit her head back against the wall as she struggled again to break free.

Davina turned towards Marcel. He looked terrified of her. None of them had ever seen her this powerful before. She was unhinged.

“And you!” Davina yelled. She was barely keeping the tears out of her eyes as she confronted Marcel. “I trusted you! I _loved_ you, but you were just _using me_ to stay in power! You don’t care about me.”

“You’re wrong,” Marcel pleaded.

“When you lost to Klaus, you handed me over. Like some _trophy_. Maybe I should boil you in bronze.”

“I care. I took you in like you were my own _blood.”_

Before Marcel could get another word in, a wrought iron poker tore through his chest. He coughed up blood. Marcel folded in on himself. Rebekah was standing behind him. In Davina’s shock, she let go of the spell holding Azariah. Riah scrambled over to Elijah. She pulled his head into her lap. She didn’t care about the blood staining her clothes. She just wanted to make sure that he was going to be okay. She held her ear to his chest. His heart was still beating. Even after losing all of that blood, he was still with her. She pressed a kiss to his forehead and let out a shaky breath.

“Come on now, love,” Rebekah cooed, “don’t tell me you were falling for that. Isn’t it time for us girls to have a chat?” She stepped over Klaus’s body and gestured to the three unconscious vampires. “Now that is impressive. And well deserved, in my opinion. Now, before you turn on me, I have a surprise for you.”

Josh slowly came into the courtyard. He looked just as confused as Azariah felt.

“Josh, what are you doing? Get out of here,” Davina shook her head.

Rebekah suddenly grabbed Josh by the neck. She carefully lifted him a few inches off of the ground with one hand. Josh clawed at her neck desperately.

“What are you doing?!” He choked out.

“Now, if I were Klaus, I would rip Josh’s head from his neck, feed it to a nightwalker, and that would be the end of your friend. But hurting people is such a boyish thing to do,” Rebekah dropped Josh, “like how Klaus compelled your fiddler on the roof. And while I am many things, I am _not_ my brother.” She walked to Tim. “It’s okay, Timothy. You can come down. No one’s going to hurt you.”

“He told me that I couldn’t climb down off this beam,” Tim whimpered.

“Then don’t climb, silly! Am I the only smart one in the room? Jump!”

Rebekah held out her arms. Tim took a deep breath before jumping down. She was able to catch him easily. She gently set him on his own two feet. Davina let out an audible sigh of relief. Rebekah looked proud of herself. She’d had something else planned this whole time. Riah had to admire her for that. She was getting pretty good at lying to them all. Tim rushed over to Davina. 

“Davina, how did you do all that? How did I even get here?” Tim asked incredulously.

“I'll explain everything, I promise.” Davina turned to Rebekah. “Why are you doing this?”

“Seems to me that you're the one holding all the cards, but you don't know who to trust. I've just proven that you can trust me. Now I'd like to show you one more thing. Won't take long. You can bring your friends. Coming, Riah?”

Azariah gently set Elijah’s head back on the ground and stood. She wanted to know what Rebekah was doing. She had worked hard for all of this, after all. Josh and Tim stayed close to Davina. Azariah walked side by side with Rebekah. The blonde wouldn’t tell her anything. Riah had no choice but to wait like the rest of them.

****

* * *

****

Riah’s nose was assaulted with the smell of decay. She looked around at the various brick pillars that were built up. Some had hands sticking out of them. Others, she could see the faces of various vampires. So, this was where Marcel took those that he punished. The skeleton of a house that he had never finished. It was a good hiding place. He bricked them up in small prisons and made sure that they truly suffered. Desiccation from lack of blood was a horrible thing. A vampire’s heart only stopped beating if they were truly killed. Even without blood, it would continue trying to pump. Their veins would rub together like sandpaper. The brain, usually so good at keeping those functions in the back of the mind, would find nothing to focus on but the pain, sometimes for centuries. It was a fate worse than death. Marcel would never truly be able to let anyone trapped in this… dungeon. Not without keeping an eye on them.

With two humans present, all of the vampires that could still move reached towards them. They longed for just a drop of blood. It would be enough to bring them back to vitality until they could find another victim. Davina clung to Tim’s arm. Josh looked around like he had seen all of this before. He probably had. A sick warning to remind him who was in charge, no doubt.

“Oh, don't worry. They're not really dead, just really hungry…” Josh said. Davina and Tim both still looked horrified. “And I'm not helping.”

“You think my brother Nik is awful? Marcel learned from the best. This is how he treats his so-called friends who betray him. Most of what these poor souls did is no worse than what Josh did. Take Thierry, for example. He was Marcel's most trusted friend. Klaus tricked him into breaking one of Marcel's rules. Marcel knows this, and yet he keeps Thierry locked in here day after day, suffering.”

“This is insane.” Tim shook his head.

“Why are you telling me this?” Davina asked, crossing her arms.

“Because you need to know who you're dealing with, who you can trust.”

Davina took a step away from Rebekah. She was just a kid. There was no reason that she should have been forced to see all of this. None of it. Not the Harvest ritual, not the Garden, most certainly not Klaus. Her biggest worry should have been what she was going to wear to the next high school dance, not whether or not she was going to die trying to kill a hybrid. Tim pulled a bottle of water from his pocket and put a hand on Davina’s shoulder.

“Hey, hey, it's gonna be okay. I mean, you're gonna be all right. Here. Drink something.” He gave the bottle to Davina.

She took it gratefully and took a long drink from it. Rebekah stepped in front of Davina.

“Davina, both you and I have been lied to and taken advantage of by Marcel and Klaus. Maybe together, we can get a little payback.”

Tim started to cough. It was quiet at first but it quickly became violent. He fell to his knees and clutched his chest desperately. Davina kneeled next to him worriedly.

“Tim?”

“It was Klaus,” Tim choked, “he made me do it. I didn't even know what I was doing until I made you-”

“Made her what?” Azariah asked.

“Drink.”

It hit Riah instantly. She ran a hand through her hair. “He poisoned the water,” 

Tim stopped talking. Davina shook him desperately. Davina fell to the floor in the same coughing fit. Josh stopped her from hitting her head. Azariah and Rebekah watched in horror. Riah shook her head and bit her wrist. She held it in front of Tim. She did everything she could to get him to drink her blood. It stained his lips. Josh did the same for Davina. Neither of them responded to it at all. If any had gotten into their systems, it wasn’t making any kind of a difference. 

“Call Klaus. Now!” Azariah commanded. “We need to find a way to stop this.”

Rebekah nodded and did as she was asked. Riah continued trying to get either one of the children to respond to her. Whatever this poison was, it was powerful. That was probably why Klaus had chosen it. His backup plan was to make sure that no one human survived this. If Davina died with vampire blood in her system, she wouldn’t be a witch anymore. That meant she wouldn’t be a threat to him anymore. Tim? Well, in Klaus’s eyes, the boy was just collateral. No one mattered more than he did. No threat was more than just a threat, even if said threat was just a kid. He didn’t care. 

Josh helped Riah move Davina and Tim to a different part of the Garden, farther away from the vampires. They laid them side by side. Josh wiped the blood from their mouths with his sleeve. Azariah looked over at Rebekah. She was pacing as she talked to her brother. She was just getting more frustrated. That wasn’t a good sign.

“For both of them, you diabolical bastard! They're children! We could've dealt with her fairly,” Rebekah yelled.

She hung up the phone in frustration. Josh looked at Rebekah hopefully, but Riah knew that tone of voice with Klaus all too well. There was no saving them. Josh let out a choked sob and looked down at his friend. Riah stood and wiped the dirt off of her jeans. She wanted to say that this shocked her to her core. That she couldn’t believe Klaus would have ever stooped so low. She’d be lying. She wanted to believe that Hayley’s unborn daughter had somehow made Klaus more sympathetic. More willing to see things from another perspective. She was wrong. He killed children. He’d truly killed innocent children that had done nothing wrong besides get caught up in vampire business.

Klaus called Rebekah again. She looked at Davina and put a hand over her mouth as she looked over at Tim. Riah listened as both of their hearts struggled to continue beating. Their breathing grew weaker and weaker until it finally stopped all together. They were dead. The vampire blood had done nothing, just like Klaus had said. Rebekah hung up the phone.

“Marcel had a protection spell put on Davina. She’ll be back with us any time now,” Rebekah explained.

“But what about Tim?” Josh asked.

Rebekah shook her head. He was dead. He wasn’t coming back. Azariah leaned against one of the decrepit pillars in defeat. Josh sat next to Davina and took her hand. He waited patiently for her to wake up. Azariah walked over to Rebekah and put a hand on her shoulder. They had more of an understanding of each other now than they had in the past. A mutual distaste for anything Klaus related. They had tried to give him the benefit of the doubt one too many times. It always ended with people dying. Good people. _Innocent_ people. Riah was tired of it.

Davina gasped for air as she was revived by the magic spell. She held her throat for a moment as she got her breath back. She looked up at Rebekah and Azariah, glancing over at Josh for a moment. All three of them looked at her sadly. Finally, her gaze reached Tim. He wasn’t breathing. He wasn’t coming back. Tears instantly filled her eyes. She leaned over his body, crying and shouting for him to come back to her. She didn’t want to be alone.

Azariah gently pulled her away from Tim’s body. Davina pounded her fists against Riah weakly for a moment before collapsing into sobs in her arms. Azariah held her upright. She brushed her fingers through Davina’s hair and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Josh ran a hand down his fast. Riah picked up Davina bridal style. They needed to get back to the compound. She glanced at Josh.

“Take care of him, Josh, and then run. I don’t know what they’ll do if they find you here,” Riah said softly.

Davina cried in Riah’s arms for most of the trip back to the compound. After a while, she fell silent and eventually even drifted into a restless sleep. Riah did everything she could to make it as peaceful a trip as possible. Even sleeping, Davina was clinging to her like a lifeline. Azariah knew the pain of losing a loved one all too well. She knew the pain that Davina was feeling, probably better than anyone else. 

Rebekah and Azariah walked back into the compound’s courtyard with Davina in tow. It had been cleaned up considerably since they had left. Only the wrought-iron poker Rebekah had stabbed Marcel with remained. When Marcel saw Davina was with them, he rushed over. Riah stopped walking.

“Is she okay?” Marcel asked.

“She's devastated and exhausted. Where's her room?” Rebekah asked.

Marcel shook his head and held out his arms. “No, I got her. I got her.”

Azariah looked at him skeptically. She didn’t think that Davina was going to be too happy with the idea of being anywhere near Marcel, not after tonight. After a moment or two, she relented and gently passed Davina to Marcel. He immediately walked away with her. Klaus and Elijah were there, too, no doubt waiting for this moment. Elijah had cleaned himself up, too. Rebekah glared at Klaus before she walked away. Azariah took a few steps towards them. She accidentally kicked the poker with her foot. She leaned down and picked it up. She inspected it carefully. Marcel’s blood was caked onto it. 

Without a second thought, she used all of her strength to launch it at Klaus. It was enough force to knock him to the ground. As he fell, the poker was pushed from his chest. She didn’t say anything. Klaus yelled a few profanities at her. She ignored every word. Riah stepped over him, past Elijah, and followed Marcel’s path to Davina’s room.

Marcel had already placed Davina in her bed. He was standing at her bedside. He looked sad. Good. He deserved every second of that sadness. He had done more to hurt her than he realised. Maybe this would help him come to terms with that. He glanced up at Riah. They didn’t say anything. Riah sat down next to Davina’s bed and gently took her hand. She pressed a kiss to her knuckles. There was nothing else that she could do. Not now. Elijah joined them a few moments later. Marcel didn’t look away from Davina as he spoke.

“She'll never trust me again.”

“Perhaps. You must never surrender the fight to reclaim that trust,” Elijah said softly. 

He looked curiously at Davina’s easel. It was covered with various sketches. Scratches, really. Dark, messy lines that made no sense. Maybe one was an eye? Azariah couldn’t tell. Elijah couldn’t, either. He picked up the stack.

“These drawings, what are they?”

“She drew those the whole time she was in the attic. Said they're different than what she draws when she senses magic. These ones, she called them evil.”

Azariah’s eyes widened for a moment. She carefully placed Davina’s hand back on the bed and walked to Elijah. She took one of the papers from him. With Marcel’s permission, they took the rest of them. Riah sat in one of the chairs with a strong drink while Elijah worked on putting all of the pieces together. They connected, just like a puzzle. 

She took a sip of her drink. She wanted to forget this day, but she wouldn’t let herself. Never. She had again been reminded of the cruelty of NIklaus Mikaelson. He claimed so much that he was nothing like his father. He lived by that statement most of his life. Today, when she had come back into the compound carrying Davina, she had seen nothing _but_ Mikael in him. He could deny it all that he wanted, but he was _worse_ than Mikael was. There was a reason Mikael wanted Klaus dead for so long. It was more than being a bastard. Maybe that was how it had started for him, but that was just the beginning. His cruelty knew no boundaries.

“I can’t help him anymore, Elijah,” Azariah’s voice was barely over a whisper. “He killed a child tonight. He would have killed two if it wasn’t for you and Marcel intervening. He’s made his position _very_ clear.”

Elijah stopped working but he didn’t look up. “I can’t blame you for that.”

“I have people I need to protect, my love. You, for one. Erik. Hayley. Davina and Rebekah. Even the child, once she’s born. I need you to know that I will do anything to keep them safe. Even if it means I have to-”

“You won’t. You know you won’t.”

Azariah wasn’t so sure about that. She knew that if she did ever kill Klaus, she’d lose Elijah. As much as she hated it, you couldn’t have one without the other. If that was what needed to happen to keep other people safe, then that was what she would have to do. The line had to be drawn. Elijah finally finished the sketches. Riah set her drink down and walked over to get a better look. She knew that face. She had only caught a glimpse of it once, 200 years ago, but she’d never forget it. 

“Celeste?” Azariah said in shock.

“You know her?” Elijah asked in just as much shock.

“Yes. Well, no, but I’ve seen her. Once. In 1820, I… I came to New Orleans to find you again and I saw you. With her.”

“Then it was you I saw all those years ago.”

“That was me. I didn’t want to… intrude, I suppose, on your happiness. So I left again.”

“Well, you arrived only a few months before she died. Klaus launched a witch hunt. Celeste was one of the unfortunate victims. I lost her because I allowed myself-”

“No.” Riah said.

Elijah looked at her in confusion. She got down on his level and took his face in her hands. She made him look at her as she spoke.

“You did _nothing_ wrong, Elijah. _Nothing_. She died because of _Klaus_ , not because of anything you did.”

He nodded, but it was fairly obvious that he didn’t fully believe her. She looked back down at the pictures. It was so clearly Celeste. Why had Davina labeled them as evil? What did she know?

Was she right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish that I had taken more time to write in the relationship between Davina and Azariah. I'll try better in the future


	47. Just to Burn: Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my longest chapter to date.

The next morning it was chaos. Between the constant fighting of Marcel and Davina to the picture of Celeste, the Mikaelson family had their hands full. Azariah left briefly to grab different drinks for herself, Hayley, and Elijah. They had been pouring over all of the different possible meanings since they’d identified who was in those drawings. Elijah was still convinced that Davina had been mistaken in some way. Azariah wasn’t so sure. Perhaps it was simply because she had never had an actual conversation with the woman. She didn’t have the same connection that Elijah did. She didn’t see Celeste as some lost lamb. Not like he still did, after all of this time. She couldn’t blame him for that. She couldn’t blame him for having loved someone else while she was away. It was in his nature to be loving. He saw the best in people. Sometimes to a fault.

Riah left the kitchen with two mugs of coffee in her hands. As she turned the corner, Klaus dropped a girl at her feet. Her neck had been bitten and it was bleeding profusely. Riah blinked a couple of times before stepping over the poor girl and continuing on her way. She really didn’t care for Klaus’s pathetic attempts to get into her good graces. They weren’t any better than those he had tried on Elijah. She didn’t want to let him back in again. He killed children and hadn’t even batted an eye. He didn’t feel guilty about what he had done. He felt guilty that it made other people angry with him. Riah was just tired of him.

Klaus followed her like a lost puppy as she headed back into the small sitting room. Elijah gratefully took the coffee from her. He was reading from a book about witches. He was hoping that it would have some sort of insight into Celeste. Instead of his usual well-groomed self, he looked like he had been up all night. His tie had long since been abandoned and he’d undone the first few buttons of his shirt and rolled up his sleeves.

“The Italians call them _strega_. The Yoruba of West Africa call them _aje,_ meaning mother. Where my mother was from, they called them _häxa,_ and here we call them witch. Over the centuries, vampires have fought them and fought beside them, bedded them and burned them. Whether adversary or ally, they have been a force to be reckoned with. Their ancestral magic anchors this city. There's never been one all-powerful witch until Davina,” he sighed.

“Who is now tucked in safe and sound down the hall under my protection. Your Celeste was quite beautiful and a portent of evil, according to our volatile artist in residence.” Klaus said with a smile.

“Yes. Perhaps Davina's mistaken what she calls evil for power. Celeste was certainly very powerful in her day, but she's been dead for over two hundred years. I don't understand. Why all these sketches now?”

“It might have something to do with the Harvest. After all, Davina _is_ the last remaining Harvest girl. All this talk of resurrection, maybe the spirits are trying to warn of something more sinister coming this way,” Riah leaned over the coffee table and picked up one of the outer edges of the drawing.

“Regardless, why do witches do anything?”

Klaus was, as expected, dismissive of the whole thing. He was surprisingly calm, given everything that had happened in the last 24 hours because of him. Azariah set the paper back into place. She started to say something else, but was interrupted when a loud crash rang through the compound. She raised an eyebrow. So, Marcel was still trying to broker some kind of peace with Davina. Obviously it wasn’t going well. Klaus raised an eyebrow and rolled his eyes. He probably cared more about the damage being done to the house than to Davina’s mental health.

“Well, that’s going well,” he said sarcastically.

“If you were trying to win the girl's trust, perhaps poisoning her one true love was not the most splendid idea,” Elijah responded.

“Oh. Are there any more inopportune deaths you'd like to wave in my face?”

“Finn, Kol, Elena’s mother, _Tyler’s_ mother, Jenna Sommers, the hybrid massacre, Esther-”

Azariah was cut off by Elijah. He put his hand over her mouth. She glared at him. It was the one thing she was willing to break her silent treatment of Klaus over. There were a lot more deaths that she would gladly list off to him. Elijah had other plans, clearly.

“It would take well over a month to get you a full list,” he said sarcastically.

“Young, old, dead, or alive, witches are a pain in the ass.”

Klaus poured himself a drink from the bar and downed it quickly. Riah pushed past him and walked towards Davina’s room. Riah was one of the few people in the compound that Davina wouldn’t toss against a wall as soon as she saw her. As she drew nearer, Azariah could still hear Marcel and Davina shouting at one another. She took a deep breath in preparation for what she was going to be walking into. She slowly opened the door.

Marcel threw his hands into the air in exasperation. Davina had herself propped on her knees on the bed. Her hair was plastered to her face by sweat and tears. The food Marcel had brought her was scattered all across the room. Riah was genuinely surprised that there wasn’t a giant dent in the wall. Davina had been holding back against him. Azariah held up her hands to prove she meant no harm. It didn’t matter. Neither of them were even paying attention to her. Davina just kept glaring at Marcel. It was almost like she was daring him to try something else. She furrowed her brow after a moment, reaching for her throat. She started coughing. She coughed until she started to vomit dirt.

Marcel and Azariah both ran to her side. Davina reached out for Riah. Riah took the poor girl’s hand and watched as she continued to retch dirt. It covered her face and her hands. It wasn’t stopping and it showed no signs that it would anytime soon. Marcel brushed Davina’s hair back from her face as she threw up more. This wasn’t something she was controlling. Azariah could tell. She gently held Davina’s face as she cried.

“Remember, Davina, you can control this. You can. Breathe,” Riah said encouragingly.

Davina shook her head. More tears streamed down her face and she started to retch again. The whole building started to shake and creak as an earthquake ripped through the Quarter. Azariah forced her to lay down on her side and rubbed her back. Klaus ran into the room. He looked between the three of them and finally settled on the dirt on the bed.

“Bloody hell,” he said, “so this is her fault, then?”

Azariah stood up and grabbed Klaus by his collar. She took him out of the room and shut the door behind them. The last thing that Davina needed was the see or even _hear_ Klaus. She was probably losing control because of the emotional trauma he’d caused. She let him go and kept on walking. He matched her stride. They walked into the living room. Rebekah, Elijah and Hayley were already there, looking over the balcony. There had been more than just the building shaking. It had been a real earthquake and from the looks of it, Davina had done some real damage to some of the nearby buildings. Tourists and pedestrians looked around in confusion. Elijah looked back as Azariah and Klaus came into view.

“It was Davina,” Azariah said. She shook her head. “She’s losing control,”

Rebekah’s eyes widened as she looked at Azariah. She pushed past Klaus and ran towards Davina. Klaus looked annoyed that everyone was just using him like he was a door. Elijah glanced at Riah. She shook her head. She didn’t know what was going on anymore than the rest of them did. She was worried. If this was some kind of… reaction to the poison or her emotional distress, Riah could do her best to help her through it, but if it was something more, she wouldn’t be able to do anything.

Klaus, Elijah, Marcel, and Azariah gathered in the living room. Klaus and Marcel sat on either side of the coffee table. Elijah leaned forward in his chair, his hands clasped together in front of him and Riah had a drink in her hand. Rebekah was staying with Davina. She had stopped puking up dirt, but she was still really, really pale and she didn’t look like she was going to get better any time soon. Azariah was worried. The power from the Harvest was too much for one person to control. That was the whole point of the damn thing anyway, right? Was it an exponential growth as she got closer to the Reaping? There were too many questions that Riah didn’t have answers to. She didn’t want this teenage witch to die for something so trivial.

Klaus leaned forward a little bit. He was clearly frustrated. This whole day wasn’t going the way that he had planned, clearly. Whatever that plan was. He’d probably been trying to figure out a way to get Davina to do a spell for him because he was horrible. Riah glared at him for a moment. She was just making herself more angry. She needed to stay calm for Davina’s sake. She was going to have to work with both Klaus and Marcel to help her. With a heavy sigh, she walked to Elijah and sat next to him. She crossed her arms.

“This is madness,” Klaus mumbled. “How can a 16-year-old girl shake the entire French quarter?”

“I've seen her rock the church, but I've never seen anything like this.” Marcel shook his head in defeat.

“How did you control her when she was in the attic?”

“I didn't have to. But then, I never killed her boyfriend.”

“Yes, yes. We've been over this part already. The point is in her present state she's useless as a tool against the witches.”

“She's not a tool.” Marcel and Riah said in unison.

“Something's wrong with her.”

“No one witch was ever meant to have that much power. She can’t control it, but we knew that. Why, now, is it so aggressive?” Riah sighed.

Elijah looked up. He had a gleam in his eyes. He had an idea, then. He stood, taking Riah’s hand and pulling her along with him as he went to leave the room. She didn’t resist but she had no idea what he was planning to do. Klaus leaned back in the chair and looked at them as they headed to the door.

“Where are you two going? This isn’t exactly the time for a romantic getaway,” he grumbled.

“This is witch business. Let's ask a witch,” Elijah responded.

Klaus scoffed as they left. Elijah closed the door behind him. They were almost immediately stopped by Hayley. Azariah smiled when she saw her. With all the drama surrounding Marcel, Klaus, and Davina, Azariah had had her hands rather tied. Hayley was nervous about something. She was avoiding looking Elijah in the eyes. She took a deep breath.

“You're going to see Sophie,” she said matter-of-factly. 

Elijah scoffed lightly. “You don't have to eavesdrop. You know Azariah and I keep nothing from you.”

“Yeah, well, I don't want to keep anything from you guys either, and if you're going out to see Sophie, then there's something that you should know.” Hayley glanced at the ground nervously. “She called me and asked me for a favor. She promised me that she would help break the curse that Marcel put on my people in exchange for some information. And I didn't think anything of it, but then Davina started doing those pictures of Celeste-”

“Hayley? What are you trying to say?” Azariah crossed her arms. She didn’t mean to seem impatient, but Davina’s time was running out. They needed to be on their way.

“Sophie wanted to find Celeste's remains, so I went through your journals, and I found out where you buried her, and then I told her. I know it was stupid and it was snoopy. And I- I should have just asked you.” 

Elijah didn’t say anything. He stared at her in a mixture of shock and disappointment. Riah could even see a little anger there. Azariah only had snippets of his relationship with Celeste, but she knew that they had been very close. Close enough the Celeste had trusted him to bury her. If he’d kept that information to himself, it was for a good reason. No doubt it felt like Hayley was spitting on that. She shuffled uncomfortably on her feet.

“Please say something. Please.” she begged quietly.

“She wanted to be left in peace,” Elijah’s voice wavered. “When a witch's remains are consecrated, that power fuels the rest of their community. Celeste did not _want_ her remains to be found. She made me promise to bury her where she would not be found. You not only violated my privacy, you have broken my promise to her.”

He walked away. Hayley had tears in her eyes. She watched him leave. She turned to Azariah.

“I thought they were just bones, Azariah. I-”

“If that’s true, then why didn’t you ask him?” Azariah sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “You know how important his word is to him, Hayley. Whether you meant to or not, by telling Sophie about Celeste, you have broken his word.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

Azariah turned and started to follow Elijah. Hayley stood, despondent and alone. It wasn’t Azariah’s place to try and fix this. She knew that Elijah would forgive Hayley eventually. She was too important to the family for him to simply ignore her. Hayley was just going to have to accept that he was going to be mad for a while. She wasn’t sure what he was going to do now other than just keep searching for Sophie. She not only had Celeste’s bones, but she could also tell them just what was going on with Davina. They didn’t have any other choice. Azariah reached for Elijah’s hand when she reached him. He pulled away. Elijah shook his head.

“Celeste asked me for one thing. Just _one_. And I failed her,” Elijah sighed sadly.

“Elijah-”

“I’ll go and find Sophie. If I’m lucky, I can get to her before she consecrates those remains. Stay here. Make sure Niklaus doesn’t do anything rash.”

“Me? Control your brother? Are we sure that’s even possible?”

Elijah gave her a half-smile in response. His eyes were still sad. She gently reached for his cheek. She rubbed her thumb on his skin. Elijah leaned into her touch. He placed a soft kiss on her palm and walked away. She didn’t follow him this time. She felt that this was something that he needed to do on his own. More than that, he needed time to himself to process everything that Hayley had told him. She was close with both Elijah and Azariah. In more ways than one, she was their friend. Their family. No matter how small, a betrayal was a betrayal. Somehow, it hurt worse coming from her than it ever had from Klaus. They had never expected it from her. Maybe that was why.

She watched him walk down the street for a moment, his head low and his hands in his pockets before he used his superspeed to disappear around the corner. Azariah took a deep breath. She was going to have to face all of that madness again as soon as she walked back through the front door. She wasn’t sure that she had the strength to manage them all. It was going to take most if not all of her strength.

****

* * *

****

Elijah didn’t say a word as he walked back into the compound, Sophie Deveraux trailing behind him. She looked annoyed. Azariah really didn’t care. Elijah snapped his fingers and called for his siblings. He tossed his coat over one of the racks in the study. He sat at the desk while he waited for Klaus and Rebekah to find them. Azariah crouched on the corner of the desk, fiddling with the letter opener. She was a bundle of nerves, not that she’d ever say so verbally. There were just too many things that could go wrong now. She didn’t trust Sophie. She’d lied to them. She’d lured every Original into town and admitted, after some coercion, that she and her coven had practised human sacrifice using teenagers that didn’t know any better. She’d probably ask for Davina in return for information. That wasn’t an option.

At least Riah hoped it wasn’t. 

Rebekah flopped onto the couch as soon as she was able to. Klaus stood in the corner. Sophie had her arms crossed and an expectant look on her face. Elijah took the letter opener from Azariah, accidentally nicking her finger as he did so. She gave him a look and gently sucked the blood from her finger until the wound was healed.

“So,” Elijah began, pointing at Sophie with the letter opener, “you have stolen the remains of the very person that Davina's been drawing for months. Would you care to explain this startling coincidence?”

Sophie looked at the picture of Celeste laid out on the table. She shook her head.

“I can't. I didn't even know who Celeste Dubois was until I-”

Another earthquake shook the house violently. She was cut off and looked alarmed. Azariah was more just annoyed. Elijah rolled his eyes and tapped his finger impatiently on the desk while Klaus finished his drink. More than a few glasses fell from the wall to the ground, shattering on impact. The shaking stopped almost as quickly as it had started. 

“Was that Davina?”

“Charming little habit she's developed,” Klaus sighed.

“And the earthquake I felt today?”

“Also Davina. And, she's taken to vomiting dirt.”

As Rebekah spoke, Sophie’s face dropped. Azariah stood up and crossed her arms. She didn’t like that look. That was a look that meant this was going to get a hell of a lot worse before it got any better. That wasn’t a good look. Not in regards to Davina. Sophie was panicked, more so than usual when she was around the Original family.

“Oh. We have a huge problem. I thought that we had more time, but we need to complete the Harvest now.”

“Said the witch that has been spearheading the ‘let’s kill Davina Claire’ movement for months. Conveniently,” Riah scoffed.

“I'm serious! That earthquake you just felt is a preview of the disaster movie that is about to hit us.”

“Why should we believe you?”

“You've met Davina, you know her story. For months now, she's been holding all the power of the three girls sacrificed in the Harvest ritual. A force that was meant to flow through her and back into the earth. One person was never meant to hold that much power. It's tearing her apart, and it will take us down with it.”

****

* * *

****

Earth. Wind. Rain. And finally, fire. Azariah paced. What if they just took Davina out of New Orleans entirely? Wouldn’t that be enough to save Davina’s life? Sophie had said it herself. They couldn’t practice magic if they weren’t near their ancestors. That was assuming, of course, that Sophie wasn't lying about what was going to happen to Davina. She had too much power, yes, but surely it could still be contained. Riah wasn’t convinced that killing a child was the best way to go about this. It couldn’t be. She wasn’t convinced. Not the way that Klaus and Rebekah so clearly were. Sophie was off trying to convince Marcel, now, that it was the right thing to do. No doubt that wouldn’t go over as well as she was hoping.

Azariah didn’t know what to do. She was scared for Davina’s sake. Davina had always made it sound like the close the Reaping got, the more her powers would start to fade but time had proven the opposite. Riah hated to admit it, but she had let Davina get close to her heart. She hadn’t meant for it to happen, of course. She never did. But she saw Davina as a little sister that she was supposed to protect. She was failing to do that. She wasn’t strong enough to help her through this, whatever it was.

“So fix her!” Marcel yelled

Azariah walked to the living room. Elijah and Marcel were on either side of Sophie. Marcel looked angry. Angrier than Azariah had ever seen him in the past. Sophie just looked annoyed. She was tired of trying to convince them all that this was the right thing to do for Davina’s sake, not just the witches. She couldn’t exactly blame them for that.

“She can’t be fixed,” Sophie said coldly. “She can't be saved. This will not stop at the earth sign, and if you wait it out, you immortals will be the only ones left to argue about it.”

The wind started to howl. The shutters flew open. The curtains almost flew off of their hooks. Azariah looked outside. People on the streets were struggling to stay upright. Sophie wasn’t lying about the order at least. She probably wasn’t lying about the end game then. Riah didn’t want to say it. She didn’t even want to think about it because she knew what it meant. Davina was a fighter. A survivor. But there was nowhere left to hide. Nowhere to run because this was going to follow her wherever she went until she was either dead or took a bunch of innocent people with her. The wind slowly died down until it was like they had never happened in the first place.

Riah walked to Elijah. She reached for his hand. She clenched her jaw. Marcel looked up at them.

“Convinced now?” Sophie asked.

Klaus came back with an armful of sedatives. “I certainly am. We need to do something about our little witch while we wait for _you_ to bury yours.”

He walked past them towards the stairs. Marcel watched him in disbelief. Elijah dismissed Sophie and followed his brother. Azariah sat heavily in one of the chairs. Davina was going to die. All of that effort to keep her safe. Everything that they all had done to make sure that she would live to see another day. All of it, for nothing. She was going to die anyway. Azariah ran through any other possible scenarios. All of them ended with Davina dead. At least with the harvest, there was a chance, however small, that she was going to come back. Sophie really believed that it would work. That was going to have to be enough. She had been thoroughly convinced that it wouldn’t and now she was willing to risk everything for it. That meant something.

Marcel leaned forward in his chair. Davina was like his daughter. Maybe he’d lost sight of that for a moment, but it didn’t make it any less true. Azariah could understand that feeling better than anybody else. He didn’t want Davina to die. He didn’t want to take that risk. Riah didn’t want to, either, but they had to. Marcel stood and walked upstairs quickly, pushing past Elijah as he went. He just wanted to make sure that Davina was okay.

Elijah came back into the office and looked down at the drawing of Celeste. He looked sad. He had never wanted her to get dragged into all of this witch business after her death. That had been her one request. Azariah pulled him into a hug. He took a moment before wrapping his arms around her and buried his face in the crook of her neck. It wasn’t often that he showed his vulnerable side. This wasn’t going to be an easy day for any of them. Elijah took a step away from her and put a hand on her cheek. Some of his sadness faded when he looked at her. She gave him a soft smile of encouragement.

They walked together to the courtyard. Klaus was already picking up some of the chairs and tables that had fallen to the ground from the winds. Riah hadn’t checked to see the damage that had happened within their own homes. Elijah picked up a chair and shook his head.

“We sedated her too heavily,” he sighed. 

“Well, if this is her sedated, I'd hate to see her otherwise. We all agreed that Davina must be sacrificed. There's no need to let her blow the roof off our heads in the meantime,” Klaus reasoned.

“No way! You're not fucking touching her!”

Marcel jumped from over the balcony. He punched Klaus in the face. Klaus fell to his knees. He rubbed his face, clearly annoyed with his former protege. Elijah put an arm on Marcel’s shoulder to stop him from trying to attack Klaus again. Klaus got back to his feet and cocked his head to the side.

“Okay, I'll let you have that one.”

“Trust me, Marcel, I’m one of the last people that wants Davina to come to any harm, but there isn’t any other way to do this. We can’t just _wait_ for this to pass. She’s dying. No protection spells this time. At least with the Harvest, she could come back,” Azariah said.

“According to Sophie, the witch who screwed over everybody here.”

“According to you _and_ Sophie, she was adamantly against the Harvest at first. She now believes wholeheartedly that it _will_ work. That doesn’t just happen, Marcel. You know that. We have to believe, too.”

Marcel shook his head, pushing past her to get to Klaus. “I saved Davina from the Harvest, and now you want me to just hand her over?”

“Do you think that I'm happy about this? If the witches complete the Harvest, not only do they regain their power, we lose our weapon against them. The earthquake I was willing to chalk up to hideous coincidence, but these winds? If Davina is not sacrificed, then every inch of earth that shook, everything blowing about now will soon be drenched in water and consumed by fire.” Klaus crossed his arms.

“Oh! Now you care about the city.”

“We ought to. We built it.” Elijah scoffed.

“And we all saw it burnt to the ground twice. I will not let that happen again. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yeah.” Marcel hesitated before he spoke. He shook his head slowly. “Yeah.”

He took a few steps away from Klaus and headed back to Davina’s room. Riah tried to think of something, anything else that she could say to try and make this any better. Did he really think that she _wanted_ Davina dead? She had wanted to protect the girl. It just wasn’t possible. Klaus took a deep breath as he watched Marcel. Elijah raised an eyebrow as Klaus walked towards him.

“Not a people person, are you, Niklaus?”

“Nonsense. I love people. Just on my way to warn a couple of prominent ones in case the weather gets out of hand. If you fancy yourself as plus diplomatique, perhaps you'd like to come along.”

“No. Soon Sophie Deveraux shall be consecrating Celeste's remains, and though her actions are reprehensible, still I should pay my respects.”

“Would you like some company? Moral support?” Azariah asked.

He took her hand and smiled softly. “Thank you, Riah.”

Hayley quietly entered the courtyard. She was holding a box of various canned goods. She looked straight at Elijah. She looked sad. Sad and guilty. Elijah hadn’t talked to her at all since her confession. Elijah let go of Azariah’s hand and started walking towards the door as soon as he saw Hayley coming towards them. She called out to him hopefully.

“Hey. Do you have a minute?” 

“Just on my way out,” Elijah said coldly.

Azariah shot Hayley a sympathetic look. It would hopefully get better one day. For now, he just needed his space from the situation. Hayley looked down at the ground in defeat. Tears started to form in her eyes. Klaus smirked as he followed his brother to the door.

“Which one of us is the people person again?”

Azariah glared at him as the door closed.

****

* * *

****

Sophie smudged a dot of charcoal on Celeste’s skull. Sabine stood at her feet, watching carefully as Sophie prepared everything. Elijah and Azariah stood together, holding hands. Elijah’s grip was tight. He was keeping his face neutral, but Riah could feel it. All of his memories of Celeste, good and bad, were surfacing as he looked at her in this state. She could feel his joy, his love, his pain, all of it. She even caught a glimpse of Celeste’s smile as she reached out towards Elijah. Riah leaned her head against his shoulder. The winds started to pick up again. They weren’t nearly as strong as they had been at first. Even when sedated, Davina’s magic was powerful.

Elijah stepped away from the ritual. He ran a hand across his face. Azariah stayed for an extra moment before following him. Sabine glanced back at Sophie and walked over to the two of them. She put her hands in her pockets. Elijah took a deep breath as she drew near to them.

“You don't have to be here for this. It's gonna take some time for Sophie to prepare for her consecration,” Sabine said.

“I have time. I owe her this.” Elijah nodded as he spoke.

“Care to elaborate why?”

“Have you ever experienced something… so profound and wonderful that when it was taken from you your life felt unbearable?”

“Yes, I have felt that, and I've got the scars to prove it.”

“I believe that when you love someone and that person loves you in return you're uniquely vulnerable. They have a power to hurt you that's like nothing else.”

Sabine’s jaw tightened as he spoke. Elijah looked from Celeste’s remains to Azariah. She glanced at the ground a little guiltily. Celeste had been taken from his life. Riah had willingly left. She had felt the pain of being without him, of course, but at least she had prepared herself for it. Elijah hadn’t gotten that same luxury. He had bad luck in love, it seemed. More than she had realised before. She crossed her arms. The wind started to pick up again. Maybe Davina was starting to wake up. Sabine started to say something, but she was interrupted by Riah’s phone ringing. She smiled at Elijah apologetically and answered.

“Rebekah,” 

“He's taken the girl,”

“Who has?”

“Bloody fucking Marcel!” Rebekah said angrily. She and Klaus argued briefly in the background about Marcel. Azariah rolled her eyes. “Okay. We need to divide and conquer if we're gonna stand a chance. He could have gone anywhere.”

“Considering Davina can’t stop any of the witches and Sabine is here, we could always try a locator spell.”

“I'll talk to the priest,” Klaus said. “They might even be at the church. It's the last place we'd think to look for them, right?”

“Okay. You check the church, I'll check everywhere else.”

“Be safe, Rebekah.”

“You, too.”

Azariah hung up the phone and looked at Sabine hopefully. She sighed and agreed. They were going to need Davina to complete the Harvest anyway. The longer they waited, the worse all of this was going to get. She gathered everything that she needed from Sophie’s supplies and they migrated to a nearby mausoleum. The spell relied on the sand moving across a paper map. As such, the winds would create quite the problem. More than that, it would give both Sophie and Sabine some privacy while they worked on their respective spells.

Elijah and Azariah watched Sabine work anxiously. She quietly recited the incantation. The sand barely moved before gathering again in a pile. Sabine shook her head in frustration.

“This isn't working.”

“She's nowhere to be found?” Elijah asked.

“No. It's more like she's everywhere. She's _hemorrhaging_ magic. That means we have less time than we thought. We have got to find her. I have no clue where she is.”

“Please, try again. You can do this,” Riah said.

Sabine held her hands over the paper again. She started to recite the spell once more. She was much more forceful with it this time. She closed her eyes. Slowly, the sand started to move across the paper. It wasn’t a straight line in the same way that Riah had seen before. It was jagged in a few places, like it was going to change directions suddenly. After a while longer, the sand stopped. Sabine opened her eyes.

“Okay. Okay. She's somewhere near the river. I can't be more specific.”

“It's something. It's a start.”

Elijah and Azariah prepared to leave. Sophie ran into the tomb. She had a panicked expression on her face.

“It didn't work. I tried to consecrate her and absorb her magic, but there's nothing there.”

“I don't understand. A witch's magic is infused in her bones until consecrated.”

“Well, then someone's already taken it, because there's nothing there.”

“There has to be another way.”

“There is no other way,” Sabine scoffed.

“Unless you know of some super-powerful dead witch whose bones were never consecrated, it's over.”

Elijah smiled as an idea dawned on him. “There is someone else actually… my mother.”

Azariah shivered at the mention of Esther. She could just feel her power draining away as Esther prepared to kill her. She had been no more than a sacrificial lamb. Alaric killing her had been the only good thing he’d done as a vampire. Riah never, ever wanted to feel that weak again. She had been so helpless. She took a few deep breaths to keep herself calm. She needed to stay calm. She couldn’t afford to lose her composure while so much was at stake. 

Sophie looked hopeful at Elijah’s words. She carefully explained everything that was going to need to happen. The most important part, the one that gave Azariah pause, was the blood used to help consecrate the ground. They were going to need it from her living and undead descendants. That meant the baby and Erik, too. That meant that Klaus was going to know that Erik was her son. She ran a hand through her hair. All of that was assuming that Erik would even help them in the first place. He didn’t want anything to do with the Original family. Why would he help them do this? Hopefully, whatever bond he had with Marcel and this city would be enough to convince him.

Elijah and Riah decided to divide and conquer. She would go to try and find Erik and convince him to help them. Elijah would make sure that the plantation was in Hayley’s name and subsequently, her child’s. Sophie would begin the preparations for the Harvest festival and the consecration. Everything was falling into place. Not perfectly, but at least the pieces were there. 

Sabine did a quick locator spell for Erik. He was in the church. Riah didn’t know why, but she didn’t really care, either. She needed to get to him as quickly as possible. The winds were starting to pick up again thanks to Marcel’s intervention. They were getting stronger. Soon enough, the water would come. Then fire. Riah shuddered at the thought of all the people that would die because of it. She thanked Sabine for all of her help. She prepared herself for this. She didn’t know what she was going to say to Erik to convince him to help. Hopefully, the impending doom would be enough.

She ran to the church as quickly as she could. Time was running out. The winds were starting to pick up again thanks to Marcel’s intervention. Riah pushed open the doors of Saint Anne’s Church. She was surprised to see just how many people were already there. From what she could tell, most of them were werewolves. They were sorting through various supplies that must have been donated because of the weather. Father Kieran said something to the people around him when he saw Azariah. The two of them had never had an actual conversation. In fact, if she wasn’t mistaken, the only interaction she had ever had with the man was when she killed Agnes and he just happened to be present. That wasn’t exactly the best first impression that she could have made. Kieran walked over to her with his arms crossed.

“Can I help you?” he asked coldly.

“Yes, you can. I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced. My name is Azariah.” She held out her hand. Kieran reluctantly shook it. “I came here looking for someone. A vampire named Erik.”

“What do you want with me?” Erik appeared behind Kieran. 

He didn’t look as hostile as the priest, but he also didn’t look happy to see her, either. Father Kieran looked at the two of them for a moment before going to help another group. Once he was out of earshot, Azariah spoke.

“I came to ask for your help.”

“I’m listening.”

“I’m sure you know what’s been causing all of this chaos,”

“Davina. Kieran said you needed to finish the Harvest. How does that involve me?”

“There was a bit of a… snag. In order to become an Elder and complete the ritual, Sophie has to consecrate Esther’s remains. Because you are her grandson, you have to participate.”

“And if I don’t?”

“The city will burn and all of these people will burn with it.”

Erik crossed his arms and took a deep breath. His expression remained neutral. After a moment, he nodded. “All right. Where do you need me?”

****

* * *

****

Azariah and Erik walked side by side back into the compound. The winds were almost as severe as they had been when they first started. The Harvest needed to happen soon. They had put their search for Davina on hold to make sure that the others were on board with this plan. It was important to Elijah that this decision was unanimous. Because it involved their mother, it was a delicate situation. She had done a lot to harm them in the past. Riah shuddered to think of it again. Who knew what Esther would do once she was a spirit of the New Orleans witches? Azariah didn’t have time to worry about that now. She had to focus on the things that needed to be done to ensure that there still _was_ a New Orleans.

Azariah could hear Rebekah arguing wholeheartedly for the sake of their mother. Riah took a deep breath before she pushed open the doors to the office. Klaus and Rebekah eyes widened when they laid eyes on Erik. For Rebekah, it was the first time she had gotten a good look at him. Klaus had mentioned once that Erik looked like Finn but thankfully never looked too far into that. He didn’t ask prying questions. Elijah gave Riah an encouraging smile.

“We will all attend the ceremony as conduits of Esther’s magic while Sophie completes the spell,” Elijah said.

“To complete this ritual, we need _all_ of Esther’s descendants,” Riah said. “ As such, I would like to introduce you all, formally, to Erik. Erik Finnson.”

Erik raised an eyebrow at the last name. Riah didn’t say anything else. It was the clearest way she knew to get her point across. Klaus sat up in his chair. She kept her eyes on him. She knew his way of thinking. She didn’t want to do this. If she could have avoided ever having the two of them meet, that would have been ideal. There was an uncomfortable silence filling the room. Rebekah was the one to break it.

“Now I _know_ you’re pulling my leg,” Rebekah laughed. “You never had any children, Azariah. Certainly not with Finn.”

“Would you care to explain his appearance, then?”

“It’s a coincidence.”

“How often are things like this a coincidence in our lives, Rebekah?” Elijah asked.

“I would remember if I had a nephew!” Rebekah fumed.

“Unless those memories were taken from you,” Riah reasoned. “For one reason or another, Erik was taken from us when he was very young. To help us cope with yet another loss, Esther took away any memory of him. She thought she was sparing us pain. If Finn were here, he would tell you the same. This is my son. This is Esther’s grandson.”

Erik crossed his arms. “I’m not any happier about this than any of you are, trust me, but the last thing I want is to see this city burn. After this, you won’t have to hear from me and I won’t have to hear from you.”

Klaus applauded quietly. “He’s even a stick in the mud like Finn. Welcome to the family, nephew. Brother, you and Azariah might just be mad geniuses. Count me in on this plan,”

“Am I the only one thinking?” Rebekah scoffed. “Our mother was the most powerful witch in history. If we bury her, we hand that power to our enemies to use against us.”

“Given our circumstances, I hardly see that we have a choice, Rebekah,” Elijah replied.

Rebekah sighed in frustration, shaking her head. She looked up at Elijah earnestly. Maybe even a little incredulous, still.

“I don't know why I bother. You three will just do what you want anyway.”

“No. Our decision must be unanimous.”

“This is not a democracy,” Klaus huffed.

“You're quite right. This is family.”

The howling wind was replaced by pounding rain. It sounded like someone was trying to break the doors and windows down. Water. They were one step closer to the destruction of the city. The four of them looked up at the ceiling. Elijah turned back to Rebekah. He was almost desperate. He needed her approval. He wouldn’t act until he had it. None of them would.

“Water. The next sign's begun. Rebekah?”

“Kill a demon today, face the devil tomorrow. Count me in.”

“Well, this is no family reunion without our mother. I'll fetch her.”

Klaus smirked and jumped out of his chair. Azariah stopped him by the door, putting her hand on his chest. She didn’t look up at him. Rebekah and Elijah looked at her curiously.

“I want to make one thing very clear to you, Niklaus Mikaelson.” Riah’s voice was cold. Her tone was serious. “If Erik is harmed in any way for the rest of our lives and there is even a _hint_ of your smell on it, I will take that White Oak Stake you think is so well hidden and I will drive it through your heart without hesitation. Do I make myself clear?”

Klaus grinned and gently placed a hand on her cheek. “There’s my brutal sister.”

He walked away from her. Azariah’s eyes met Erik’s. He seemed shocked to hear her say something like that. She meant every word. She wasn’t going to let any harm come to him if she could avoid it. That was what she had to do. It was the only way to make up for what was essentially 1000 years of neglect. She hoped that one day, that would be enough. Maybe it would be. Erik hadn’t protested to what she’d said. That had to be a step in the right direction. Right? Riah didn’t know how to do this. She hadn’t exactly had a lot of practice being motherly. She’d taken care of a few people over the years. This was different. This somehow felt more important than all of that. 

Rebekah walked to Erik and Azariah. She was sizing Erik up. They had never met each other.

“So, my nephew just happens to be a vampire that just happens to be in this city right when we need him,” she said. “Seems rather… convenient.”

Erik turned his head to the side. “So, my aunt just happens to be an Original vampire that, despite claiming to want nothing to do with her family, is here helping them keep a city she hates safe.”

Rebekah smiled. “I like you. Well, Elijah, this is your bloody plan. Let’s get it over with.”

****

* * *

****

Klaus, Elijah, and Azariah carefully lowered Esther’s coffin into the grave. Riah stared at the Mikaelson crest. She had hoped that she wouldn’t have to see Esther in any form after she was killed. At the very least, shed hoped that it would have been a much longer time than this. Elijah took Azariah’s hand. She was grateful for his presence with her. He had been there for every nightmare. Every time she’d felt like she couldn’t breath. Esther had left a scar on Azariah’s heart and Elijah knew that better than anyone else. Of course the last thing Riah wanted aws Esther influencing the witches of this city but she wanted Davina safe more than anything else. If this was the only way to make that happen, then that was what she was going to do.

Father Kieran arrived shortly after with Sophie trailing behind him. He had a grim expression on his face. Kieran had been one of the biggest advocates against the Harvest in the first place. His nephew had paid the price for it. Now, he was actively helping it happen. That couldn’t have been an easy decision for him to make. They needed him to do this.

Erik had distanced himself from the rest of the group. He was only there for one thing. He was determined to show them all that he didn’t care. He had never been a part of the family before. He wasn’t going to start now. He brushed his fingers through his hair and blinked the rain out of his eyes. Azariah walked over to him with her umbrella. He begrudgingly took it from her. Sophie stood over Esther’s grave, whispering a soft ritual over the body to prepare for the consecration. 

Rebekah came towards them all. She had gone off to find Davina and Marcel. If anyone was going to convince Marcel to bring Davina back to the city, it was Rebekah. She could make him believe that this was the right thing to do and Davina would follow him. The truth of the matter was that there was no “right thing to do”, not now. Not with this. All of the options were terrible. Some of them were just more bloody than the others. This one before them had a chance, at least, to have a happy ending. It could bring back not only Davina but three other girls that had been killed in the witches’ bid for power. This was the only way.

“Did you find them? Will he bring her?” Klaus asked.

Rebekah nodded solemnly. “He'll bring her.”

“Are you ready to do this?” Kieran asked.

“Always and forever.”

Klaus pulled a dagger from inside his jacket and slit his palm. He let the blood drip into Esther’s grave. Rebekah took the blade next and did the same. Elijah and Hayley followed suit and finally, the dagger reached Erik. He glanced at Azariah for a moment before drawing the blade across his palm. Once they had all done their part, Father Kieran took the blade. He threw it into the grave. He looked up at them all.

“It's done,” he said.

“The Harvest has to be completed at the cemetery. Let’s go.” 

Sophie started walking to her car. The others followed suit. Erik rode with Azariah and Rebekah in silence. They all had to be present for this. The Mikaelsons were the conduits of Esther’s power and until the Harvest was over, they would continue to do so. Riah was going because she felt that she owed it to Davina. She had tried everything she could think of to help the young girl and in the end, none of it had worked. It was always going to end with Davina’s blood being spilled.

The group gathered in the cemetery. This was the place where so many had died, whether at the hands of the witches or the vampires. Riah could still feel all of that energy there. All of that death stained a place. Elijah stood next to Azariah. She held his hand. She didn’t realise just how much she needed him. Klaus paced around. He kept looking at Erik curiously. He’d catch Azariah glaring at him and look away for a moment, but his eyes would always find their way back. Riah could see the gears turning in his head. He was planning something. She didn’t like it. She’d given her warning. It wasn’t just a threat. It was a promise.

The rain died down. The cemetery went up in flames. The fourth sign. Rebekah had done it. She’d convinced Marcel to bring Davina to them.

Marcel came around the corner, Davina in his arms. She was pale. Much paler than the last time that Azariah had seen her. Marcel walked towards them with a determined look on his face. The flames licked at his heels as he brought Davina to the altar. Carefully, he set her down. Sophie held the athame over the flame and looked at Davina.

“Do you believe in the Harvest?” She asked.

Davina nodded nervously. “I believe.”

Sophie took a deep breath. She stepped behind Davina and dragged the dagger across her throat. Riah let out a choked sound and turned her head into Elijah’s shoulder. She heard Davina gasp in shock. Elijah held the back of Azariah’s head. She didn’t want to watch this. She couldn’t watch another person she cared about die, even if she would come back. The fire around them died out. Riah looked at Davina, lifeless in Marcel’s arms. The magic slowly moved from her throat to her hand that was touching the ground until it was finally out of her body.

“After the Harvest comes the Reaping. Their sacrifices made and accepted. We call upon our Elders to resurrect the chosen ones.”

Nothing happened. Azariah glanced at Davina’s body uneasily. She wasn’t moving. She was still dead. Sophie cleared her throat and tried again.  
“We call upon our Elders to resurrect the chosen ones…”

Again. Nothing. Sophie was quickly getting flustered. She had tears in her eyes. Riah clenched her jaw. No. Not again. It couldn’t be happening again. Please.

“Resurrect your chosen ones... Please? I beg…”

For one final time, nothing happened. Something had gone horribly wrong. The witches had lied or the Harvest had taken too long. Whatever it was, Davina wasn’t coming back. Sophie cried out and started to sob. Azariah couldn’t feel anything. She felt broken. Incomplete. Hayley and Rebekah started crying, too, but Azariah couldn’t. She didn’t have any tears left to shed. Marcel glared at Klaus. This was his fault. Without saying anything, Marcel disappeared into the night. Erik walked to Azariah. He didn’t have any words. Instead, he just hugged her. Riah was shocked. After a moment, she wrapped her arms around her son and finally, her tears came. 

“I’m so sorry, Erik,” she quietly sobbed, “for everything you went through. For abandoning you. For all of it. I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

Azariah pulled away and looked up at Erik. “I’ll do my best to respect your wishes. If you ever need me, Erik, I will come to you. I promise.”

Erik nodded. He looked at Elijah. Elijah held out his hand. Erik shook it and walked away. There was no reason to stay anymore. What was done was done. The only thing left to do was move forward.

Forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's why it's my longest chapter to date


	48. **Just to Burn: Chapter 11**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to relive the emo glory days and listen to so much Fall Out Boy and get into the writing mood, amiright?

Azariah groaned when she woke up. It was a new day. Katherine Pierce was finally dead. It was a new day. Davina Claire was still dead. The only thing that Azariah had had to look forward to the last two days was Klaus being gone while he made sure that Katherine was truly dead this time. Elijah had thought about going as well, but Azariah had convinced him to spend a Klaus-free day with her. They hadn’t had one in far too long. Not since long before the New Year. It had been nice to have a little bit of time, just the two of them. Unfortunately, that day off had turned into the two of them trying to take care of New Orleans and the vampires. Marcel had shut off completely after the ritual. Azariah wanted to. She really, really, wanted nothing more than to sit and drink her problems away with him. Elijah wouldn’t let her. He had seen the way that she could get when she lost the people that she loved.

Today was the day that Klaus was coming back to New Orleans. She wondered if he’d be in a good mood or not. No doubt that depended on the blonde vampire he was infatuated with. What was her name? Ah, Caroline. Something about her drew Klaus to her in a way Riah hadn’t seen for centuries. He may have said it was all for Katerina, the one who had evaded him for so long, but RIah liked to think that she knew him a little better than that. He had been looking for some kind of an excuse to see Caroline Forbes again since he had first left Mystic Falls. She wondered if he’d find time to mention his child while he was there. No, he wouldn’t. It was bad enough that every supernatural creature in New Orleans knew about his child. He didn’t need the whole world to learn about her, too. She was going to have enough enemies once she was born. She just had to be born, first.

Azariah pushed herself out of bed and got dressed. It was going to be another few hours of arguing with the vampires trying to get them to listen to her for any time at all. They really did only care about Marcel. It was admirable but annoying. She hated arrogant young vampires. Marcel had breeded a whole heap of them and now he refused to control them. Azariah walked out to the balcony overlooking the courtyard.

She could see Marcel was already back. And with a new bottle of bourbon. Fun. He’d completely depleted the compound’s supply within the first few hours after the ritual. Now, he’d taken to doing the same to the local bars and liquor stores. Erik walked over to Marcel. Riah had hoped that he, at least, would have been able to convince Marcel to get back on his feet. She could see now that she had been wrong in that regard. He wasn’t listening to anyone or anything but his own grief. It truly was a shame. He had been a good king for this city.

Elijah joined her. He rested his hand on her lower back and kissed her cheek.

“And how are you feeling today, darling?” Elijah asked.

Azariah watched Erik sit down next to Marcel and whisper something to him. Marcel pushed him away and drank more of his bourbon.

“I’ve been thinking about what went wrong with the Reaping,” Azariah said. “That magic had to go somewhere. It’s a lot of power to just go missing without a trace.”

“So I take it you’ve found yourself a project, then?” Elijah sighed heavily. “What happened to a day of rest?”

“It’s somewhere. I’m not worried about you or Rebekah. But there are members of this family that can still be hurt or killed. I can’t rest while that kind of a threat exists.” She turned and put a hand on Elijah’s cheek apologetically. “We will have a day to ourselves. Soon.”

“I’m considering that a promise.”

“I’m counting on it, love.”

Klaus burst through the doors with a grin on his face. He had called everyone back to the compound. Riah had been expecting him to want to make a grand entrance. She hadn’t been expecting for him to have Thierry by his side. He had gone to such lengths to get Thierry put into the Garden in the first place. She leaned against the railing and watched curiously as Klaus stepped into the center of the courtyard.

“Dearest brethren, your attention, please.” Klaus held his arms out wide as he regarded the vampires. “No doubt, you're all surprised to see Thierry Vanchure, who's supposed to be rotting in the Garden for the crime of killing one of our own, and I personally decided to issue him with a pardon. I hope you'll all welcome home Thierry.”

Thierry smiled and walked towards his friends. A few of them ran over to greet him, too. Marcel didn’t even look up from his glass. Klaus walked to his friend. He clapped Erik on the back. Azariah narrowed her eyes as she watched them all interact with one another. Marcel shook his head at whatever Klaus said to him. Klaus scowled and turned back to the vampires again.

“Now, as you all know, the witch Davina is no longer with us. Without Davina, we can no longer monitor the activity of our witch neighbors. However, since their Harvest failed, their magic will soon be gone forever. Until then, I say we keep them on their toes. Diego, I wonder if you might lead a rousting in the cauldron.”

Diego eagerly agreed. He was already gathering his group of vampires. Azariah pushed off the railing of the balcony. She didn’t feel like watching any of this go down. The last thing they needed to do was antagonise anyone else. Klaus didn’t seem to realise that. If there wasn’t chaos, then how could he possibly be a king? That was the way that Klaus had always seen the world. Peace wasn’t exciting enough for his lifestyle. Azariah didn’t have a good feeling about any of this. She wanted to chalk it up to guilt about Davina, but it was something more. She could feel it. Something was about to happen. Something bad.

****

* * *

****

The sky above them was overcast. It had been for a couple of days now. It was a surprisingly fitting atmosphere for recent events. Rebekah had been avoiding the compound since she had gotten back from Mystic Falls. She’d gone with Klaus, sure, but she’d had her own reasons for doing so. Now, she was back to avoiding him. It was like a one-sided game of cat and mouse. Elijah was trying to convince her to trust Klaus again. Come home. See that he was changing. Riah didn’t believe that was true. Klaus had expressed mercy because it would ingratiate him to the other vampires. He’d be one step closer to actually being accepted as their new ruler.

Elijah wanted to remain optimistic.

“Now, you may doubt him,” he said to Rebekah, “but today, I saw Niklaus demonstrate mercy towards an enemy. Tell me that's not progress.”

“Please, Elijah. Who do you think convinced Klaus to let Thierry out?” Rebekah scoffed.

“Why would you do such a thing?”

“Because, despite Klaus' reprieve, Thierry despises him. I like that about Thierry. I also like that he used to date a witch, so he knows about French Quarter covens. Maybe he can lead me to whoever stole off with the Harvest magic.”

Azariah crossed her arms. That wasn’t a terrible plan. She almost wished that she had thought of it. Who better to help with this particular case than someone that knew the witches? Rebekah knew how to be devious when she wanted to. Sometimes it was a little scary. Elijah shook his head as they walked past another cafe. 

“I was willing to put this aside for the sake of Riah,” Elijah said. Riah raised an eyebrow. He was going to pay for that comment later. “We are all devastated by the outcome of this ritual-”

“What outcome?” Azariah huffed. “That kind of power doesn’t just disappear, Elijah. We all know that. I already told you that I’m not willing to sit around and let some new threat harm this family. Any of it. There’s also the matter of Davina’s drawings. If her power came from the ancestors, then why were they so adamant about showing her Celeste in particular? Where was her magic? There are too many variables here.”

“I say someone stole it. I'd like to know who, and then I'd like to make an ally out of them.”

Elijah stopped walking when he heard Rebekah’s words. Azariah was shocked herself. Of course she knew that Rebekah had developed her own hatred of Niklaus over the years. She hadn’t thought it would come to this. Rebekah continued for a short while before she turned to face her brother again.

“To what end, exactly?” Elijah asked.

“I'm tired of being threatened and controlled by our tyrant brother. If you want to stop a bully, you need the power to stand up to them.”

“I expect such behavior from Niklaus. It's so very disappointing when it comes from you, Rebekah. Do you not see that, in his way, he's making an effort here? He's invited us back into our family home. He yearns for our family to be reunited.”

“Yes. He's in a brilliant mood now, but for how long? It's his trick, Elijah. He lulls you into a false sense of camaraderie and kinship, and then he turns on you like a snake. I fall for it every time and wind up with a dagger in my chest for my trouble. No more.”

“I believe that he is approaching some semblance of peace here. Leadership may, in fact, be a good thing for him. Now, sister, please, I ask you, if you cannot support him, then at least do nothing to provoke him.”

Rebekah didn’t say anything. She turned on her heel and walked away from Elijah and Azariah. Elijah let out another heavy sigh. He was trying so hard to keep the family together. It was all that he felt he had. Riah wanted him to know that that wasn’t true. He had so much more to live for. Of course Rebekah and Azariah both wanted to bring back the Niklaus from their childhood. He had been a kind soul. Azariah used to be able to rely on him for anything. He had truly been her brother. Times had changed. They both had changed. Elijah, for all of his faults, had remained the same in his loyalty and devotion to his family above all else. 

Small raindrops started to fall from the sky. Azariah held out her hand. She hadn’t been expecting rain today, but she couldn’t say that she was surprised to see it. The rain slowly started to get worse. She dropped her hand and turned her face to the sky, letting the rain overtake her senses. Riah closed her eyes. She wanted to believe that this rain would be enough to wash away all of her guilt. She imagined all of the red in her ledger slowly dripping away until she finally had a clean slate. Was that so much to ask for after 1,000 years? A clap of thunder roared somewhere far off. 

Elijah held his jacket over her head and blocked out the rain. 

“This doesn’t make up for the ‘put it aside for the sake of Riah’ comment,” she mumbled.

“I’m going to pay for that comment, I know.”

“Well, as long as you know.”

“You agree with Rebekah, then, that whoever has taken this magic should be an ally _against_ Niklaus?”

“No. Yes. Maybe? I don’t know. At the moment, I don’t particularly feel murderous towards your brother. And I can’t set aside the fact that Erik still resides in the compound and we don’t know which of our bloodlines he comes from. I don’t want this power to be used against our family and, as much as I hate to admit it, Klaus is a member of that family. Against his own will, I might add. I think we need to find who took the power and figure out how to get it away from them.”

She and Elijah started walking back towards the compound. Klaus’s rousting of the witches was probably over with by now. She wasn’t particularly looking forward to seeing the place crawling with vampires again but she needed to get to work finding where the magic had gone. If she could find it before Rebekah did then she could just kill whoever had it and get the whole thing over and done with before it even became a problem. Riah wasn’t the biggest fan of the New Orleans witches. If Sophie was any indication of what the others were like, then they were very underhanded. Azariah had killed Agnes because of that very same quality. Given another chance, she wouldn’t hesitate to do it a second time. That didn’t mean that she wanted them all to lose their magic forever. It had been years since she herself had been able to practise magic and she could still remember what it felt like to lose it.

As Azariah and Elijah came back into the compound, they saw Klaus carrying a desiccated vampire over his shoulder. Diego was close behind him with another. They carefully set the vampires on the ground. It wasn’t a normal death. Riah could tell that before she even got close to the body. There were no signs of a wooden stake or any other damage besides a strange symbol on the vampire’s forehead. Riah had never seen anything like it before. Elijah and Klaus didn’t seem to have the same sentiment. Elijah kneeled down by the body and ran a hand down his face. Klaus glared at the body and shook his head.

“Someone will die for this,” Klaus growled.

“Remarkably, I don't disagree. However, I would like to know where they learned such dark magic,” Elijah said. He stood up and started pacing.

“I had hoped never to see that symbol again. I recall it is the signature of a fool who once stood against us.”

Azariah leaned down and stared at the symbol. They had seen it while they lived in New Orleans. Clearly, neither of them thought that there was anyone else that could possibly know this magic. That meant it was incredibly old and it was incredibly dangerous. There may not have been a way to protect themselves or the other vampires from it. Riah instantly started to look around for Erik. She didn’t want this to happen to him. She refused to watch another person she loved die. Not if she could do something to stop it.

“Clearly, some upstart witch is salvaging old tricks. I'll do for him as I did the other. Diego, when night falls, I want you to gather every vampire in the Quarter. Get me the head of whoever did this and put it on a stick.”

“Yeah. That's gonna be a problem.” Diego began. “Everyone is freaked out, man. We haven't had witches killing vampires in a long time. Marcel made sure of that.”

Klaus chuckled dryly. “Marcel has run off like a scared child. You lot are left with me. Now, who of you will fight to defend our home?” No one came forward. “Not a single one of you will stand with me, so afraid are you of this new threat? You should know better. I'll handle this myself.”

He walked away. All eyes were on him. Azariah carefully stood up and stepped inbetween the bodies. She looked to the small group of vampires that had gathered around them. All daywalkers. All trusted by Marcel. Not a single one of them were actually strong. They had apparently given themselves the illusion of strength under Marcel’s rule. Now that it came time to defend what they considered theirs, they stood in silence. She shook her head. She wasn’t surprised, of course. She had never really been expecting any of them to actually do any kind of heavy lifting.

The group started to disperse slowly. None of them would be leaving the compound any time soon. It was safe for them there. For now, anyway. Azariah wanted to know more about this symbol. Clearly, Elijah knew more about it than he was saying now. She crossed her arms and looked over at him.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s going on here or do I have to coerce it out of you?” 

“That sounds tempting, but we don’t have the time for coercion. That symbol was used by a very old, very powerful witch. His name was Papa Tunde He came to New Orleans in 1919, long after our family had established ourselves here, with his twin sons. They bore the symbol you see before you. With his arrival came a wave of disorder. He claimed to want to empower the witches of the Quarter but to Niklaus, that was as good as a declaration of war.”

“Why do I feel that this story doesn’t end well?”

Elijah nodded. “Klaus, being himself, had Papa Tunde’s children killed and beheaded. He had been channeling them since long before he came to our shores.”

“And then he killed this Papa Tunde, too, I presume?”

“He did.”

“Wonderful. Well, a very old, ancient magic comes to town shortly after a failed ritual involving the ancestors of the very witches this Papa Tunde joined so long ago. It seems like yet another inconvenient murder of your brother’s has come back to haunt us.”

“So it would seem.”

“We should make sure that Hayley is all right. I haven’t heard from her all day and I don’t want her to get caught up in this.”

Elijah glanced away. He hadn’t talked to Hayley since the night of the Harvest. True, they had been very busy trying to reestablish themselves in the city, but he had been avoiding Hayley entirely. It was tiring trying to cover for him. Hayley was clearly upset that he had started to ignore her. She had done something awful, true, but Elijah had been one of the only other people that Hayley actually liked talking to in the compound. To say that his absence was felt was an understatement.

It was more than just Celeste, unfortunately. Klaus had more than once expressed how much he hated any of his family interacting with Hayley. He was paranoid that they were poisoning her against him. He of course didn’t realise that they didn’t need to do that for him.

“You can’t avoid her forever, Elijah,” Riah said softly.

“I’m not _avoiding_ her.” Elijah insisted.

“Great. Then you can look for Hayley while I call Rebekah. I have a feeling she and Thierry are already looking into this matter. Maybe she can provide some new insight to all of this.”

Elijah opened his mouth to protest. Azariah raised an eyebrow. With a heavy sigh, Elijah walked up the stairs. Riah looked back at the bodies. She shivered as she studied the symbol on their foreheads one more time. It was dark magic. Maybe she had been too hasty denouncing the daywalkers. She wasn’t sure that she even wanted to keep investigating the matter. She wondered what this witch would be able to do if they got their hands on an Original. Would this kill them or would it act more like a dagger? She wasn’t sure that she wanted to find out.

Riah shook her head. For now, she needed to get Rebekah back to the compound. She had been in New Orleans when Papa Tunde had arrived. Surely she’d know a little bit more about him. She pulled out her phone and called Rebekah. The phone rang a few times before going to voicemail. Riah sighed. Rebekah _had_ been angry with Riah and Elijah today. Maybe she was just being difficult. She tried again.

Once more, the call went to voicemail. Azariah started to get worried. Rebekah was upset with them, sure, but she’d always answer the second call. It was too risky not to. The family had no shortage of enemies and the last time one of them hadn’t answered the phone, he’d been stuck in a box by Klaus. This wasn’t like her.

Elijah and Hayley started to come down the stairs. Azariah looked up at Elijah worriedly. Either something had happened to Rebekah or she had something to do with all of this. Whichever one it was, it wasn’t going to end well for anyone involved. Elijah rushed over to Riah.

“I can’t get a hold of Rebekah. She won’t answer any of my calls or texts,” Riah said.

“Oh, Rebekah…” Elijah pressed a hand to his temple.

“You worried about whoever killed those daywalkers still being out there?” Hayley asked.

“Frankly, I'm worried that she had something to do with this. She's very displeased with Niklaus, perhaps even conspiring with others.”

Azariah watched Thierry walk back into the compound. Alone. He had a bottle of gin with him. He sat down at a table alone and started drinking. Elijah and Azariah didn’t even have to glance at each other to start walking towards him. Thierry started to get up to leave when he saw them both coming towards him. Azariah pushed him back into his chair. Elijah sat across from him. He narrowed his eyes.

“Thierry, is it?”

“That's right.”

“My sister is rather fond of you. Strange, she's not typically drawn to unremarkable men. Would you care to explain your sudden magnetism?”

“I don't know what you're-”

Elijah was clearly annoyed with this little game. He didn’t wait for Thierry to finish his sentence. He stood and grabbed Thierry by the throat. Thierry gasped for air as Elijah pushed him back against the wall. Azariah leaned on the wall next to him. She smiled sweetly at him.

“You know, it really is pointless to try and keep this to yourself,” she chastised, “when you should know that we always get what we want in the end. I suggest you start talking before one or both of us start cutting off pieces and leaving them for your friends to find.”

Thierry sighed. “She asked me to keep an eye out on witch stuff. I found something, and when I showed her, we were jumped by some guy. He desiccated her with his touch.”

“Like a coward, you left her,” Elijah fumed.

“What was I supposed to do, fight some warlock that took out an Original?”

“Where was this, exactly?” Hayley asked.

“The docks, warehouse 57. I was just doing what she asked. You _cannot_ tell Klaus about this.”

Elijah snapped Thierry’s neck and threw him away from the wall. “I shall take that into consideration.”

Elijah straightened his jacket. Azariah started to walk towards the door. He was close behind her. This was much more serious that Riah had feared. She had no idea how powerful this warlock was now that he was channeling an Original vampire. Hayley stepped towards them.

“I'm coming with you.”

“Absolutely not,” Riah scoffed. “Thierry is a coward, yes, but he’s also right. This person, whoever he is, desiccated Rebekah with one touch. What do you think he’s going to do to you? You’re staying here where it’s safe.”

“Rebekah is in trouble. I'm going.”

Elijah and Azariah looked at each other for a moment. Would it really be safer for her in the compound if they weren’t there to protect her? Adding to that the fact Hayley was quite skilled at evading her vampire guards, they wouldn’t be able to keep her safe regardless. Elijah sighed.

“Don’t leave our sight for even an instant, understand?” Azariah said.

Hayley nodded. The three of them started off towards the docks. 

The whole ride there, Azariah’s leg was twitching. She was nervous. She had felt what the most powerful witch practically ever could do to a vampire. If this warlock had even half that power, they could be in for one hell of a fight. Even more so if he was channeling an Original. Riah could understand taking power from a vampire. They were creatures that were heavy in magical power. A whole coven of witches had once realised that for themselves. Azariah didn’t know too much about them, just that they drew from the power of vampires. The only problem with that was it killed the vampire. An Original could only be killed by one thing. Channeling an Original could be an unlimited wellspring of power. She didn’t want to think about that happening to Rebekah now.

Elijah didn’t stop driving until they reached the warehouse. They were already moving slower than either of them would have liked just to make sure that they could keep a close eye on Hayley. Riah looked for the right warehouse. She found it quickly. The door was still open. They all rushed in. No one else was there. There were no employees, no vampires, just the three of them. It was like it had been cleared out just to make sure that there was privacy. It was a lot more eerie than anything else she had encountered since she’d come to New Orleans.

Rebekah was lying on the ground. Elijah yelled her name. Her skin was completely gray and dark veins littered her body. She was in a circle of salt, more symbols around her. A dead snake was at her feet. It’s blood covered the ground. Riah and Elijah both ran to grab her. They were stopped by some kind of a barrier. Azariah hit it in frustration. Witches and their damned fucking invisible barriers. 

“What’s happening?” Hayley asked.

“Some kind of boundary spell. Someone is channeling her. Typically, it's a lethal process, but because she's an Original, she can't die. Instead, she's an endless source of power,” Elijah explained.

“So what are we supposed to do?”

“We have to get her out of there somehow,”

“Call Sophie,” Riah said. “She’s a witch. She’s dealt with boundary spells before.”

Elijah nodded. Riah paced around the circle impatiently, waiting for Sophie to pick up the phone. The longer that this took, the more people that this warlock could hurt. The more likely it was that he was going to attempt to channel Erik. What if he already had? Riah didn’t want that to be a possibility but she couldn’t rule it out, either. She felt sick to her stomach. 

Was this Celeste? She had been on the Otherside for a while now. She could have somehow met Papa Tunde. Maybe she’d somehow managed to break through the barrier after the Harvest and come back to life. Davina had been drawing her for some reason. It wasn’t a coincidence that now something that could take out an Original was walking around the streets. She could barely hear Elijah explaining the circle to Sophie. Hayley put her hand on Azariah’s shoulder. She smiled appreciatively, covering Hayley’s hand with her own. She glanced back at Rebekah worriedly. 

“You're not listening!” Elijah growled. “We cannot enter the circle. There's some kind of confinement spell. If I can't remove her, we can't break the link.” He looked over at Hayley and Riah. “What about the blood of a witch?” He hung up the phone and walked to Hayley. “I need a favour.”

“The baby. She's a quarter witch,” Hayley nodded.

Azariah gingerly took Hayley’s hand off her shoulder. Hayley gladly offered her wrist. Riah willed her fangs forward. The veins under her eyes moved. She met Hayley’s eyes as she gently bit down on her wrist. Her fangs easily broke the delicate skin. Riah closed her eyes for a moment as Hayley’s blood entered her mouth. It was a sweet, iron taste. She pulled away and held Hayley’s wrist over the magic boundary line. Almost instantly, the salt started to fizzle and deteriorate. Elijah stepped over it and picked up Rebekah. He nodded. Azariah took Hayley’s hand and they ran out of the warehouse as quickly as they could.

It took a while for Rebekah to come back to them. Azariah found someone on the street to give a generous donation of blood to help her along. She compelled the person to leave and forget. Rebekah’s skin started to regain some of its colour and the symbol healed itself. They all let out a sigh of relief. Rebekah took a deep breath and sat up. Elijah was instantly by her side, talking to her quietly to help her calm down. She looked around wildly. She shook her head.

“It was _him_. It was Papa Tunde. He’s come back somehow. Where’s Thierry?” She asked.

“At the compound, I imagine, drowning himself in gin,” Riah scoffed.

A dark expression crossed Rebekah’s face. She stood and ran off. Elijah sighed in frustration. Azariah shook her head.

“Go. I’ll take Hayley back home. Be careful. Papa Tunde is still out there and if this is any indication, he’s angry.”

Elijah nodded. “You, too. I’ll see you at home.”

He ran to follow Rebekah. Azariah took Hayley back to the compound. She escorted her back to her room, waving off the guards that Klaus had assigned to her. There was nowhere safer for her than by the side of an Original. Besides, she wanted to make sure that Hayley was okay. It had been a stressful day. That wasn’t necessarily a good thing for someone pregnant. Hayley let out a sigh of relief as she walked into her room.

“How are you feeling? Are you all healed?” Riah asked.

Hayley held up her wrist. “All healed up.”

“Good. That’s good. Thank you for your help, Hayley. Elijah and I both appreciate it. I know it’s… difficult right now with everything going on.”

Hayley gave a slight nod. Azariah smiled softly and started to leave the room. She still needed to find Erik. There hadn’t been any more reports of any other vampires being killed yet. She hoped that was enough of a sign that nothing had happened to him. The last thing she wanted was to learn that he had been killed by Papa Tunde. She’d kill the witch herself if that was the case. Hayley called out to her.

“Riah, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.” She turned and smiled again. “You can ask me anything,”

“Blood sharing. You said once that it’s… intimate. Is that different between a vampire and a werewolf?”

“That’s not what today was, if that’s what you’re asking. And yes, it’s different. In most cases, if a vampire is feeding off of another vampire it’s for one of two reasons: they either have no other source of blood and one or both of them are desiccating, or they trust each other enough to _want_ to share that with each other. Vampires and non-vampires aren’t always so simple. I think then it comes down to consent and trust. Trusting that the vampire has control and trusting in your connection with one another.”

“I trust you.”

“And I’m glad to hear that, Hayley. You should get some rest. It’s been a hell of a day for us all.”

Riah left Hayley alone in her room. She was going to track down Erik now that she had a chance. She would have to convince him to give her his phone number at some point. It would be a lot easier than tracking him down on her own or trying to bribe a witch to do a locator spell. As she walked down the hall, she almost ran directly into Elijah. He smiled.

“You should really pay more attention to where you’re going,” Elijah joked. “Not that I mind running into you.”

“Sorry about that. I need to find Erik. I don’t-”

“Erik’s fine. After an… interesting conversation with Rebekah, I went looking for him. He’s alive and well.”

“Thank you!”

Azariah kissed Elijah. He wrapped his arms around her. It had been a rough day. They had done a lot of running around. She let out a soft, contented sigh. Papa Tunde didn’t have anyone else to channel and Klaus would worry about killing him a second time. They had earned a few moments to themselves, hadn’t they? Elijah ran his hands along her sides. He pushed her back against the wall. It felt like it had been ages since she had kissed him like this. She inadvertently moaned into his mouth. They pulled away from each other and both laughed.

“Maybe we should take this somewhere a little more private,” Riah said.

****

* * *

****

Riah pulled Elijah close to her chest, bringing their lips together. She tugged his lower lip with her teeth. Elijah’s hands trailed down her back and he started to untuck her shirt. Her lips trailed along his jaw. She explored his exposed skin while he worked on unbuttoning her shirt and pulling it off of her shoulders. She completely melted into his touch. His body was so warm against her, his fingers featherlight as they explored skin that he already knew better than anyone else. Their kiss was filled with more than just mindless passion. It was like they were trying to breathe their adoration for one another into each other’s lungs. It was like they were the only two people in the whole universe. She could have lived for the next thousand years just on his kisses alone.

She knew that she could never get tired of the feeling of his hands on her body. She loved that he was still so thorough in every movement that he made. There was a reason behind it all and Riah was intoxicated already. That was all that it took from him. She had survived so long on just longing looks shared across the room for so long. She was never going to make that mistake again. She had what she wanted. She just had to hold on to it now.

Elijah brought his hand to her jaw. He tilted her head at an angle to give himself better access to her mouth. She gave up any semblance of control that she might have had at the start of this. It had been too long since they had had a real moment to themselves. She wanted to give herself over to him. He was the only person that she would ever truly belong to, mind, body, and soul. As much as she could give herself over to him, he could do the same for her. The trust that they held for one another was like nothing else. They could, even if just for a moment, let their guards down and simply revel in the warmth of a lover’s embrace.

Elijah trailed kisses along her jawline to her neck. He kissed her neck, his lips just a whisper of a touch. He picked her up. Azariah wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her to the bed. He rather unceremoniously dropped her on the mattress but she didn’t care. His hands ghosted along her sides. Elijah captured her face in his hands.

“You’re mine,” he said softly. 

“Always and forever,” she promised.

He leaned in slowly and kissed her again. Riah’s eyes fluttered closed as his lips met hers again, any semblance of being gentle with one another long past. Elijah let out a small sigh of pleasure as his body enveloped hers, her nearly bare chest resting against his. He was just careful enough not to crush her under his weight. He fumbled with her bra strap for a moment, making her chuckle.

“You’re over a thousand years old and you _still_ have trouble with a lady’s undergarments?” she snickered.

“I think I prefer corsets and stays,” Elijah responded easily. “At least the strings were easy to replace.”

With a soft grunt, he ripped the back of the bra open and took it off of her in one fluid motion. Riah couldn’t find it in herself to even pretend to be upset. Instead, she retaliated by doing the same to his shirt. Elijah raised an eyebrow at the ruined fabric before tossing it over his shoulder. 

“That shirt was expensive,”

“So was the bra,”

“Touche,”

Elijah lifted Azariah’s hips and helped her take off her pants. They, too, joined the pile of clothes that were mostly in some state of disrepair at this point. He ran his hands along the smooth skin of her legs, making his way up towards her thighs yet still avoiding where she longed for him to be. 

“Are you ever going to stop teasing me, Elijah?”

“So impatient.”

Azariah wrapped her legs around his waist and flipped them so she was straddling his waist. She could feel his hard length against her thigh, straining against the constraint of his pants. She easily undid his belt and zipper. He raised his hips as she pulled down his pants and boxers. She slid down onto his cock easily. Her whole body shuddered as she finally got what she had been craving for so long. Elijah’s head fell back against the pillows. He gripped her hips and forced her down the rest of the way until their hips were flush against one another.

She dragged her nails down his chest. She let out a satisfied hiss as he filled her completely. She slowly started to move her hips against his. She set a quick pace. They hadn’t been able to be together for such a long time. She was reveling in it now. Elijah’s hips rutted up against her. A stuttered moan left Riah’s lips. 

She rocked her hips against his. A soft string of curses came from them both. They were trying to be a little quieter than they had in the past. This house was a thousand times worse in terms of people who could hear them. Her moans were under her breath, just loud enough for the man beneath her to hear. She gazed down at him, trying to commit every part of this to her memory. His furrowed brow, the subtle clench of his jaw, the way his eyes were filled with love and lust. 

His hand found her clit, brushing against it just enough to get a reaction from her. Azariah bit her bottom lip to keep her whimper inside. Of course, he didn’t need any sounds from her to know the effect that he had on her. Her ever-tightening grip on his upper arm as she moved herself up and down his cock was more than enough. She chased her pleasure. She could feel it coiling up in her stomach. Her breathing turned to pants, her moans to groans of need. She couldn’t keep her pace slow anymore.

Elijah’s hands tightened on her hips as he urged her onward. Azariah threw her head back. Biting her lip hard enough to taste blood as she came silently. Elijah gripped her back and turned them around. Her legs automatically wrapped around his waist as continued thrusting into her. He kissed her as he came, their lips stifling his own moans. Elijah pulled out of her and collapsed on his side next to her. She laid her head on his chest, tracing nonsensical patterns into his skin with the tips of her fingers.


End file.
